Night-life declining fastest in the capital with 3,000 businesses lost

THE devastating scale of the crisis that has engulfed the late-night economy in and around London since the start of the pandemic was laid bare today by new figures showing that more than 3,000 nightclubs, bars and pubs have been forced to close down.

- Jonathan Prynn

Latest data from the Night Time Industries Association (NTIA) reveals that 3,011 businesses have shut in the capital and the commuter belt — far more than in any other region — since March 2020.

Across the UK as a whole 13,793 nighttime economy businesses have been lost up to December 2023, more than 15% of the total, in an unprecedented wave of failures.

Nightclubs have been particularly badly hit with numbers down by more than a third across the country, according to the NTIA. The sector suffered from lengthy lockdowns during the Covid pandemic, as well as crippling post-Brexit staff shortages when premises were allowed to open.