The #VATsTheProblem campaign, spearheaded by chef Tom Kerridge, has been signed by people at the time of writing as it edges closer to its one million signatures target.
Kerridge is asking business owners to encourage every member of their team to sign the petition, as well as their families and friends ahead of a wider consumer launch on 1 July.
The subject has been raised in the Scottish and English parliaments, but so far MPs have yet to publicly back the move. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has avoided questions put to him at Prime Minister’s Questions on the subject, and the Scottish Licensed Trade Association (SLTA) has criticised First Minister John Swinney for failing to give a ‘straightforward answer to a straightforward question’ when asked by Alyn Smith MSP if he would back the campaign.
“Rather than giving a straightforward answer to a straightforward question, the First Minister’s deplorable response was more focused on playground bickering and political point-scoring than answering a question, raised by one of his own industry-respected party colleagues Alyn Smith MSP, a champion of the hospitality sector,” says SLTA managing director Colin Wilkinson.
“The lack of response, whether positive or negative, in our opinion signals a high level of disinterest and contempt for one of Scotland’s key sectors and contributor to the Scottish economy. It also begs the question of the First Minister as to what he sees the future role of the hospitality sector, if in his mind it has any part to play at all, in his aims to grow Scotland’s economy.”
A growing number of chefs and restaurateurs have added their voice to the cause in recent days, including Simon Rogan. Rogan, who picked up the Outstanding Industry Contribution award this week at the National Restaurant Awards, has urged more people to get behind the campaign.
“Everyone needs to get behind the petition, the campaign brilliantly launched by Tom,” he says. “But we need to keep the momentum going. So if we all stand together we can make a real difference.”