£500 voucher to spend in restaurants

[Alex50]

Would you go out to dinner, pub shopping if the government paid you to do so?

www.theguardian.com/politics/2020/jul/05/sunak-considers-500-vouchers-for-all-uk-adults-to-spend-in-covid-hit-firms

£3250 shopping spree would be great would not go in person though.

Would be £2000 here

That would pay for the kids clothes for the rest of the year, plus stuff for us adults to

Damn right I would go out and spend it

Yes please. I've been out every day since lockdown started anyway so I don't need an incentive, just some free money

@SheWranglesRugRats

It’s almost as if trickle down economics is utter bollocks. Who’d have thought it.

well knock me down!

I would spend the voucher and hope that the big chains were not included in this scheme.

No

No, as shielding has not yet been paused, and even when it is caution is advised on going into indoors premises.

Perhaps adults from shielding/recently deshielded households could have a different 'buy British' voucher?

I’ve recently jacked in my job to start a PhD so I’ll be living on a student stipend for the next three years. I won’t hold my breath for the voucher but if it does materialise, I would very gratefully spend it!

Over 8k for the radfords

They can put it all straight through their own shop

Over 8k for the radfords

They can put it all straight through their own shop

I'd spend it in small local businesses, but I'm a single parent so I'd be thinking carefully about making it count for us too and stretch as far as possible as well. If I was given cash I'd admittedly save most of it.

A VAT cut wouldn't make much difference to us, in a supermarket shop I'm only paying it on cat food and chocolate, almost everything is exempt.

I'd rather not have it if it meant a tax hike that cost me more or less for vital services.
No such thing as a free lunch and it'll end up being for the business of thedonors who have cosied up to the Tories.

Yes I would.

That £500 wouldn’t cost us £500 in extra tax. For a starter 83 quid will come straight back for the Treasury in VAT. Of the remaining 416 a lot will probably go on wages to people who’ll still be in a job, and hence not claiming UC. Some will go in commercial rent, which I realise is not popular on MN, but a surprising amount of that will go to people’s private pension funds, stopping them needing to claim top-up benefits down the line. Some will go in paying business rates to the local councils who’ll go from precarious to actually insolvent if all the hospitality businesses go bust. And at the end of the day, in the unlikely event that the company makes a profit this year, the Treasury takes its cut once more. Bear in mind that none of this would happen if you gave the money directly to the business.

I would absolutely spend this! Kids clothes, school uniform, eating out, a night in a hotel ..

If that happens I'll eat my hat.

@tiredanddangerous you could share the "hat" with @LEELULUMPKIN

No point if it all goes to pizza express or similar.

There’s plenty of point in it going to Pizza Express- increased demand means they need more staff, who gets wages, which means they in turn can shop, pay bills etc and don’t get made redundant. They have suppliers (not just the food, but eg printers who print the menus, kitchen equipment manufacturers etc) who also have employees, and need the business. And landlords, who need rents to keep their business running, and staff employed. And on it goes.....

I would definitely go out and spend it. Even if it were £500 per household it would help so many people along with getting the majority of people out and about again spending again.

However I think the proposed amount just wouldn't happen and I imagine logistically it would be a nightmare to roll out.

I'd like new carpet in living room :)

I wouldn’t have to be asked twice, god knows I need a bit of a treat after the last few months. And I would probably spend some of it in Pizza Express!

Fucking love this idea!

From an 100% selfish POV i admit!

@PineconeOfDoom Will you be taking Beatrice and Eugenie this time seeing as Ms Maxwell is otherwise engaged?

@LEELULUMPKIN I’ll leave that to their father, seeing as he found his last trip there so memorable

It's OK them giving £500 to spend in restaurants, but I haven't got £50 to cover the tip.