Gordon Ramsay warns hospitality faces a ‘bloodbath’

Gordon Ramsay has issued one of his starkest warnings yet about the state of the UK hospitality industry, describing the months ahead as a potential “bloodbath” for restaurants and pubs already struggling under sustained financial pressure.

Speaking to the London Evening Standard, the chef said he had never seen trading conditions as severe in more than three decades working in hospitality, warning that upcoming Budget measures risk tipping already fragile businesses into closure.

“I was 21 when I moved to London, and I’ve never seen it so bad,” Gordon said.

“When I look ahead to April, when the Budget measures come in, I think those of us in hospitality are lambs to the slaughter.”

Budget pressure and policy uncertainty

Gordon’s comments follow the 2025 autumn Budget delivered by chancellor Rachel Reeves, which outlined a series of fiscal measures designed to stabilise public finances but prompted widespread concern across hospitality.

The Budget confirmed changes to business rates relief alongside wider cost pressures linked to employer National Insurance contributions and operating expenses. While the government has positioned the reforms as part of a longer-term overhaul of the rates system, operators warned that the timing and pace of change risk compounding financial strain before businesses have fully recovered from the pandemic.

Subsequent signals from government suggesting a potential U-turn on aspects of business rates for pubs have offered limited reassurance, with many restaurateurs and publicans saying uncertainty itself is undermining confidence and investment decisions.

Closures accelerating across the sector

Against that backdrop, Gordon described a sector already contracting at pace, particularly in London.

“Restaurants are already closing every other day,” he said.

“It devastates me because it seems no-one in power is thinking ahead and considering where we’ll be in five years. We’re being suffocated.

“What’s happening to pubs is madness: there was already one shutting every day before these proposed rises in business rates and taxes. They’re being crippled.

“Restaurants aren’t faring much better. I live in Wandsworth and you can’t walk 10 metres without seeing another closure, another boarded-up front.”

Industry bodies have echoed similar warnings since the Budget, pointing to rising fixed costs, reduced discretionary spending and weakened cash flow across both independent and group operators.

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‘We need more oxygen’

Central to Gordon’s criticism is the speed at which policy changes are being introduced. He argued that hospitality has not been given sufficient time to rebuild after the pandemic and years of suppressed trading.

“The changes in rates should be implemented much more carefully, with a much slower transition from what exists now to what the Government wants,” he said.

“The trouble is that the rises are coming in too quickly, at one of the worst possible moments.

“We want businesses to have growth, something none of us have had in the past five years. We’re barely standing.

“We need more oxygen - a reduction in rates of 20 or 25 per cent. That would give businesses a much-needed head start.”

Rising costs on every front

Gordon also highlighted the cumulative burden of rising costs across wages, utilities and ingredients, noting that hospitality businesses have little room to absorb further increases.

“It’s not just rates: the past few years have seen massive rises in utilities, ingredients and staff costs,” he said.

“Although I’m all for the rise in minimum wage, we deserve to be paid fairly. I’m not sure the Government realises how hard we work, to be honest.

“Ministers are not working closely enough with us to get a proper handle on how things will fare if they insist on implementing these changes.”

A crisis beyond past downturns

Reflecting on previous industry shocks, Gordon compared the current situation to the 2008 financial crash and the foot-and-mouth outbreak, but said the present moment feels more dangerous.

“This is the worst I can remember things being,” he said.

“I remember September 2008, the Lehman Brothers going under and the financial crash. It wiped 35 per cent off our business overnight.”

He added: “We weathered the storm there, but this is on a different level. Because it’s so soon after the pandemic, we’re already backed up. We’ve barely had a chance to stand up and now we’re back on our knees.

“With this business rate storm brewing, it’s going to be catastrophic.”

Gordon Ramsay in the kitchen — Gordon Ramsay has spent decades running restaurants

Customers at breaking point

Gordon also warned that diners themselves are under increasing financial pressure, limiting how much restaurants can realistically charge.

“The bigger problem is that, like us, customers are at their breaking point too,” he said.

“People don’t have £250-a-head to spend.”

A generation at risk of walking away

Perhaps most concerning, Gordon warned of the long-term impact on hospitality’s future workforce.

“Such difficult trading conditions don’t just stifle a restaurant’s ambitions for growth, they’re stifling confidence in individuals too,” he said.

“The younger generation now have no interest in setting up their own businesses because of the jeopardy and level of pressure that’s on their shoulders.

“We’re all going to miss out on a generation of independent chefs and independent restaurants.

“Everyone loses. The Government’s plans simply will not work, I promise you now.”