London, Sept 22 (AFP/APP):British leisure group Whitbread, owner of Premier Inn hotels, announced Tuesday that it could axe up to 6,000 jobs and blamed “subdued” travel demand during the coronavirus pandemic. Whitbread, which also owns restaurants including Brewers Fayre and Beefeater, said it will consult on the cutbacks that would amount to almost a fifth of its workforce. “With demand for travel remaining subdued, we are now having to make some very difficult decisions, and it is with great regret that today we are announcing our intention to enter into a consultation process that could result in up to 6,000 redundancies in the UK,” said chief executive Alison Brittain in a statement. The London-listed leisure firm said that it expected a “significant proportion” of the redundancies would be on a voluntary basis. Britain reopened its hospitality sector in July, after a months-long nationwide lockdown that began on March 23. The UK government also launched stimulus package for the troubled industry, including a restaurant discount scheme — entitled ‘Eat Out to Help Out’ — and a cut in value-added tax (VAT). However, the government will later Tuesday unveil new restrictions to curb rising coronavirus cases across England and prevent a deadly … Continue reading UK leisure group Whitbread to cut 6,000 jobs?