Hospitality gets a hand as Rishi Sunak plays a dangerous game of dice with Covid

Grants of up to £6,000 per venue have been offered, writes James Moore, but how far will that go as people steer clear of going out for fear of Omicron?

Grants have been available as the public locks down because of Omicron (EPA)

It might be just me, but I feel that some of the gloss is starting to come off Rishi Sunak.

Back from his sojourn in California, the chancellor has put his hand in his pocket and come up with some cash for businesses in a hospitality sector left reeling by Britain’s great cancellation.

The headline numbers – a £1bn package of support with grants of up to £6,000 per venue to be distributed to eligible businesses through local authorities – would have looked a lot better had this come earlier.