Euro Weeks
Christina Taylor, who owns Shed Bistro in south Belfast and employs about 30 staff, said that another rise in the minimum wage would mean higher prices for customers. "The raise last year meant that every guest would need to spend £4.50 more to cover that," she said. "That's so much money and people can't afford that.
"Raising the minimum wage isn't the answer to the cost of living because it goes in a circle and no one is better off. "Everyone is still struggling and it's not sustainable for anyone." Taylor added that there "needs to be support for households or else eating out will be a thing of the past". She said she had noticed that people were not eating out as often, with the exception of special occasions.
"The cost of living affects us so much, more than Covid - eating out for people is now a luxury and it shouldn't be." She echoed calls from business groups like Hospitality Ulster, which want to see a reduction in VAT. "We really need to see a VAT reduction," she said. "Comparing ourselves to the South (Republic of Ireland) at 9% and Europe at 10% and we're sitting at 20%, it's not sustainable.
"Something needs to happen to change that." Derek Moore cares for his parents Margaret and Douglas in Greysteel, County Londonderry. He would like to see help with heating costs and for carers in Northern Ireland. Social security is devolved, so any changes announced in the Westminster Budget would not automatically apply in Northern Ireland, as legislation would have to pass through the Stormont assembly.
Moore said he could not get his parents "out and about" as much as he would like to "because the cost of living has made it much harder". "You also have to look at shopping and what things you can save money on," he added. "You also don't turn the heating on as much as you would like, you have to go down the coal route and make sure it's cosy and warm for them.
"You have to make sure that one room is really warm, and close doors." His mother is registered blind and his father had a stroke and a heart attack earlier this year. He works full-time and his parents have carers who visit four times a day. "It puts a lot of pressure on you that affects things like your social life, being able to go out and enjoy meals," he said.
Source: BBC
