Locals in the city of Milan have warned that many businesses, particularly restaurants, face permanent closure due to the lockdowns implemented to stop the spread of the Wuhan virus.
Giovanni Subioli, a local manager of one of Milan’s most popular bars and member of the city’s Gastronomy Association, claimed that up to 60 per cent of the city’s restaurants could face permanent closure due to lack of revenue during the lockdowns.
While bars and restaurants are ordered to close by 6 p.m. at the latest, some ignore the curfew rules such as those along the Naviglio Grande canal, which have been spotted with customers dining and drinking outside after the curfew, German tabloid Bild reports.
Camilla Benvenuto, a retail shop manager, said she is happy the government is relaxing some of the lockdown restrictions but noted that many shops have not been able to weather the lockdowns.
“So many stores have already had to close here because they have not survived the crisis. In front of the bars, however, there are now crowds of people. If this continues, the numbers will rise again and it will start all over again,” she said.
Nearly 400,000 Italian Businesses Face Closure Due to Coronavirus https://t.co/MpUWikalvf
— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) December 29, 2020
The comments from Milan locals come after Italy’s General Confederation of Enterprises, Professional Activities, and Self-Employment (Confcommercio) claimed that up to 400,000 businesses across the country could close due to the lockdowns.
Confcommercio president Carlo Sangalli commented on the projections, saying: “Almost half a million companies and self-employed people could close their businesses. In addition to the indispensable health vaccine, there is a need for the economic vaccine. That is, compensation adequate relative to the collapse of turnover and using all of Europe’s resources to restart our economy.”
In the United Kingdom, the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) reported similar figures, stating that over the next year, 250,000 small businesses could face closure due to the lockdowns.
Italian Businesses Threaten Tax Strike If Closed Under Lockdown https://t.co/RD5NqcORsG
— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) November 25, 2020
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