London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Oct 28, 2025

Rail strikes are catastrophe for hospitality, say industry bosses

Rail strikes are catastrophe for hospitality, say industry bosses

Rail strikes that will cancel 90% of ScotRail trains on three days next week will be "catastrophic", the hospitality industry has warned.

The Scottish Hospitality Group said it was expecting revenues to drop by a third, during RMT industrial action.

The union confirmed strikes on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday after talks failed to resolve a pay dispute.

The action by about 40,000 Network Rail staff will affect services across Scotland, England and Wales.

Some hotels and restaurant businesses said there had already been a large number of cancellations.

Stephen Montgomery, from the Scottish Hospitality Group, said: "People are cancelling ahead of the weekend because of uncertainty.

"Even with a reduced timetable we are seeing further cancellations. It is having a catastrophic effect on us.

"We are expecting more cancellations and we are sitting on the edge just now - crippled with debt, crippled with recruitment issues."

Mr Montgomery said he expected revenue in his own restaurant business to drop by a third due to the strikes.

"Hospitality seems to bear the brunt of this all the time," he added.

The Scottish Hospitality Group said it was expecting revenues to drop by a third


Following the Covid pandemic, Scotland's hospitality industry is already dealing with the impact of cancelled flights and a shortage of hotel workers.

Colin Wilkinson from the Scottish Licenced Trade Association said the situation was serious.

He said: "This is adding to a summer that is shaping up to be a perfect storm for the industry.

"Cost of living increases, staff shortages, we don't need anything else to slow down that recovery."

Bosses at the Moor of Rannoch hotel and restaurant in highland Perthshire said they had suffered "mass cancellations" ahead of the RMT action.

With 70% of its customers travelling by train to the remote beauty spot, they said they had "lost almost all bookings" for the week.


'Astronomical disruption'


Leon Thompson, of UK Hospitality Scotland, said there was a "lot of concern in the sector" about the financial impact of the strikes.

He told BBC Radio's Good Morning Scotland: "I have got member businesses saying they are already taking cancellations, hotels are saying people are cancelling their trips, cancelling their stays, even for this weekend, because of the disruption next week.

He said: "Businesses are still living with the financial shadow of Covid, they desperately need to be able to trade at their optimum level.

"Having industrial action on our railways is really just going to hold our businesses back," he said.

ScotRail has warned it would only be able to operate a limited service on five routes in the central belt, with the action leaving vast parts of Scotland without any train services.

RMT union regional organiser Gordon Martin told BBC Scotland the strikes were planned to cause "astronomical disruption".

He said: "Rather than blaming the RMT, people need to look at the UK government, the UK Treasury and the Department for Transport who are putting a tight leash on Network Rail and the train operating companies and avoiding settlement of this dispute."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
UK Announces £1.08 Billion Budget for Offshore Wind Auction to Boost 2030 Capacity
UK Seeks Steel Alliance with EU and US to Counter China’s Over-Capacity
UK Struggles to Balance China as Both Strategic Threat and Valued Trading Partner
Argentina’s Markets Surge as Milei’s Party Secures Major Win
British Journalist Sami Hamdi Detained by U.S. Authorities After Visa Revocation Amid Israel-Gaza Commentary
King Charles Unveils UK’s First LGBT+ Armed Forces Memorial at National Memorial Arboretum
At ninety-two and re-elected: Paul Biya secures eighth term in Cameroon amid unrest
Racist Incidents Against UK Nurses Surge by 55%
UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves Cites Shared Concerns With Trump Administration as Foundation for Early US-UK Trade Deal
Essentra plc: A Closer Look at a UK ‘Penny Stock’ Opportunity Amid Market Weakness
U.S. and China Near Deal to Avert Rare-Earth Export Controls Ahead of Trump-Xi Summit
Justin time: Justin Herbert Shields Madison Beer with Impressive Reflex at Lakers Game
Russia’s President Putin Declares Burevestnik Nuclear Cruise Missile Ready for Deployment
Giuffre’s Memoir Alleges Maxwell Claimed Sexual Act with Clooney
House Republicans Move to Strip NYC Mayoral Front-Runner Zohran Mamdani of U.S. Citizenship
Record-High Spoiled Ballots Signal Voter Discontent in Ireland’s 2025 Presidential Election
Philippines’ Taal Volcano Erupts Overnight with 2.4 km Ash Plume
Albania’s Virtual AI 'Minister' Diella Set to 'Birth' Eighty-Three Digital Assistants for MPs
Tesla Unveils Vision for Optimus V3 as ‘Biggest Product of All Time’, Including Surgical Capabilities
Francis Ford Coppola Auctions Luxury Watches After Self-Financed Film Flop
Convicted Sex Offender Mistakenly Freed by UK Prison Service Arrested in London
United States and China Begin Constructive Trade Negotiations Ahead of Trump–Xi Summit
U.S. Treasury Sanctions Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro over Drug-Trafficking Allegations
Miss USA Crowns Nebraska’s Audrey Eckert Amid Leadership Overhaul
‘I Am Not Done’: Kamala Harris Signals Possible 2028 White House Run
NBA Faces Integrity Crisis After Mass Arrests in Gambling Scandal
Swift Heist at the Louvre Sees Eight French Crown Jewels Stolen in Under Seven Minutes
U.S. Halts Trade Talks with Canada After Ontario Ad Using Reagan Voice Triggers Diplomatic Fallout
Microsoft AI CEO: ‘We’re making an AI that you can trust your kids to use’ — but can Microsoft rebuild its own trust before fixing the industry’s?
China and Russia Deploy Seductive Espionage Networks to Infiltrate U.S. Tech Sector
Apple’s ‘iPhone Air’ Collapses After One Month — Another Major Misstep for the Tech Giant
Graham Potter Begins New Chapter as Sweden Head Coach on Short-Term Deal
Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa Alleges Poison Plot via Chocolate and Jam
Lakestar to Halt External Fundraising as Investor in Revolut and Spotify
U.S. Innovation Ranking Under Scrutiny as China Leads Output Outputs but Ranks 10th
Three Men Arrested in London on Suspicion of Spying for Russia
Porsche Reverses EV Strategy as New CEO Bets on Petrol and Hybrids
Singapore’s Prime Minister Warns of ‘Messy’ Transition to Post-American Global Order
Andreessen Horowitz Sets Sights on Ten-Billion-Dollar Fund for Tech Surge
US Administration Under President Donald Trump Reportedly Lifts Ban on Ukraine’s Use of Storm Shadow Missiles Against Russia
‘Frightening’ First Night in Prison for Sarkozy: Inmates Riot and Shout ‘Little Nicolas’
White House Announces No Imminent Summit Between Trump and Putin
US and Qatar Warn EU of Trade and Energy Risks from Tough Climate Regulation
Apple Challenges EU Digital Markets Act Crackdown in Landmark Court Battle
Nicolas Sarkozy begins five-year prison term at La Santé in Paris
Japan stocks surge to record as Sanae Takaichi becomes Prime Minister
This Is How the 'Heist of the Century' Was Carried Out at the Louvre in Seven Minutes: France Humiliated as Crown with 2,000 Diamonds Vanishes
China Warns UK of ‘Consequences’ After Delay to London Embassy Approval
France’s Wealthy Shift Billions to Luxembourg and Switzerland Amid Tax and Political Turmoil
"Sniper Position": Observation Post Targeting 'Air Force One' Found Before Trump’s Arrival in Florida
×