Summary

The “Eat Out to Help Out” scheme was launched by the UK government in August 2020 to alleviate the COVID-19 burden on the catering industry. The scheme subsidized 50% off the cost of food and drink in restaurants bills for a restricted number of days per week. Discounts were claimed on over 100 million meals through the scheme. This project will be the first to analyse the economic impact of the scheme through its effect on firm creation.

Questions

The project aims to understand the economic impact of the “Eat out to help out” scheme. The research questions are:

1. Did the scheme affect firm creation in the food sector? Was this effect distortionary on the UK economy?
2. Were there spillover effects on other industries?
3. Did the scheme affect the countries of the UK (England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland) differently?

Project Info

Summer Vacation Research Project University of Kent 2,500 PI