Hotelier accuses Boris Johnson of 'scaring' customers

Tina Goldfinch said Mr Johnson's actions were "wrong"

A hotelier has accused Boris Johnson of "scaring" customers away after he warned the UK faces an "Omicron tidal wave".

Tina Goldfinch, who runs Smiths Hotel in Weston-super-Mare, revealed many customers were staying away after the prime minister's announcement.

She has closed the hotel for the past two weeks because of a lack of bookings.

Mr Johnson has denied he is imposing a "lockdown by stealth".

Mrs Goldfinch told BBC Points West: "It's very wrong because a lot of places are having all their parties cancelled so they are going to struggle. A lot of places are going to shut down.

'Lockdown by stealth'

"What he's [Mr Johnson] saying is scaring people because he's saying 'go out but don't go out'.

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"'Socialise but don't socialise'."

Responding to the accusations, Mr Johnson said the situation this Christmas is not the same as last year.

Smiths Hotel has seen lots of cancellations amid the Omicron surge

He said: "What we have is the additional protection of the vaccines, and the ability to test.

'Get boosted'

"So if you want to do something, if you want to go to an event or a party, then the sensible thing to do, if that's a priority, the sensible thing to do is to get a test and to make sure that you're being cautious.

"But we're not saying that we want to cancel stuff, we're not locking stuff down, and the fastest route back to normality is to get boosted."

His response has not stopped businesses across the south west voicing their frustrations about the current situation.

'Plough on'

Matt Harvey, who runs the The Ring of Bells pub in Taunton, told BBC Radio Somerset the sector was "stuck between a rock and a hard place".

He added: "We were hung out to dry last year because people were saying you shouldn't go to the pub - stay at home wherever possible.

Matt Harvey said the industry had been "hung out to dry"

"But at the same time time they are not closing us down.

"There's no financial help at the moment so we have to plough on."

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