‘Keir Starmer is barred!’ – Fury in famous UK seaside town as hotels struggle to survive.uk
EXCLUSIVE: Hotel owners in a popular coastal resort have shared how trade has fallen, with one claiming Sir Keir Starmer is ‘killing us all off’.
Loraine Parker, with partner Neville Henshaw, has taken the decision to retire as business is such a struggle (Image: Paul Marriott)
“Keir Starmer is barred,” a sign reads in a window of the Beeston Lodge Hotel in Skegness. If you want an idea of the feeling many business owners in this famous seaside town have towards Labour, then this is it.
Several in Skegness’ hospitality sector say 2025 has been one of the hardest years yet, with the Government taking the brunt of the blame. They have told the Daily Express that while the Lincolnshire resort is continuing to attract visitors, spending is down, with local hotels particularly affected. Beeston Lodge Hotel is one of those to have noticed a stark difference this year.
‘Keir Starmer is barred from this pub!’ reads a sign at the front of the Beeston Lodge (Image: Paul Marriott)
Inside, it has a 60s theme and its walls are adorned with memorabilia and some famous faces that owner Loraine Parker, 73, and partner Neville Henshaw, 80, have met over the years.
Loraine, from nearby Grimsby, has run her cherished business for 20 years but is now just one of the hotel owners in the area looking to sell up.
She accused Sir Keir Starmer of “killing [business owners] all off” and named Labour’s winter fuel cuts and rising energy prices as factors for the fall in trade.
Loraine Parker says other years have been ‘nowhere near as bad’ and says visitors are spending less (Image: Paul Marriott)
Loraine, who has decided now is the best time to retire, says some visitors “can’t afford” to visit Skegness anymore, adding many are “frightened” to spend.
I speak to Loraine on a hot Saturday in June. She says she only has two of her six rooms booked and admits she would usually hope to be fully booked on a weekend at this time of the year.
She tells me other years have been “nowhere near as bad as now”.
“We’ve always had a full bar on a weekend, because this is a little bit different, the 60s [theme] and all that but the customers aren’t coming down.
“They’re not going to the caravan sites because they’ve gone up [in price], they’re getting rid of the caravans.”
Skegness is home to a large beach and is famous for donkey rides (Image: Paul Marriott)
The Clock Tower in the middle of Skegness town centre (Image: Paul Marriott)
She adds: “We used to do 22 breakfasts in the morning and we used to have eight rooms, that was in 2007, 2008, 2010.
“[It was] packed down here, Easter, took loads of money, bank holidays… but now when bank holidays come, people say you can’t even tell there’d been a bank holiday.
“People seem to be about in Skegness but after tea they’re all gone. It’s a shame, really, I do love Skegness.”
Loraine says “every single place” she’s visited recently, including pubs, have all reported facing similar issues.
Down the road is Hatters Hotel, owned by Gary Allen, 63, who too is selling up.
Gary Allen, Hatters Hotel owner, refused an offer of £563,000 to house migrants at his hotel for a year (Image: Paul Marriott)
He has already closed the 29-room hotel part of his business but is continuing to welcome guests in the bar.
Gary, originally from Nottingham, is also angry with Labour and believes the housing of asylum seekers in some of Skegness’ hotels has deterred people from visiting.
He says: “We lost loads of business, loads of people cancelled.
“[Skegness] has been a holiday destination for decades and then all of a sudden you check 500 young males in. It just destroyed the place.
“People are put off by it, it doesn’t matter how many times people try and sugarcoat it, they are the cold hard facts.”
Like Loraine, Gary has noticed the impact the cost of living crisis has had on his visitors’ wallets, while he says the Chancellor’s National Insurance Contribution hike was one of the reasons behind shutting his hotel.
“We couldn’t sustain it, it was getting impossible,” Gary explains, citing energy prices rising to a “colossal” £7,000-per month as another factor.
Gary Allen continues to open his bar but has had to shut the hotel part of his business (Image: Paul Marriott)
Gary Allen says he has had to significantly reduce the asking price on the hotel (Image: Paul Marriott)
Gary, who is now looking at starting a rental business in France, says other hotels nearby are also going up for sale.
“When we bought this place, this was like God’s waiting room.
“We invested £300,000 of our own money in converting it and it’s just been an absolute waste of time.
“We’ve just reduced it [the asking price] by £300,000 [to £650,000].”
Other businesses in Skegness have also shared their recent struggles.
Fantasy Island on the edge of the resort is one of the area’s biggest employers, but has had to reduce its hours during the off-peak season in a bid to save money.
The theme park has noticed a drop in customer spending too, in addition to soaring energy prices and labour costs.
Reform UK deputy leader and local MP Richard Tice raised concerns of growing unemployment in the area and said Labour has “got this catastrophically wrong at every level”.
The sign that welcomes visitors into Skegness (Image: Paul Marriott)
Skegness town centre was busy when the Express visited in June but businesses warn trade is down (Image: Paul Marriott)
Councillor Craig Leyland, leader of East Lindsey District Council, tells the Express: “Given the Government’s made an attempt to change the winter fuel allowance and also the impact on families with the cost of living, there’s bound to be an impact.
“We offer fantastic, good value for money on our coasts and resorts. People are bound to feel the pinch and while they’re still coming here, they’re obviously not going to be spending as much, so we fully understand that.
“Any shaking confidence on pensioners coming into the area and families will be impacted because they’ll be spending less, even though superficially it looks as though we have got lots of people coming in.
“That’s not to say it’s not a great place to visit.”
In response, a Government spokesperson says: “We are a pro-business government. Economic activity is at a record high with 500,000 more people in employment since we entered office.
“We are protecting the smallest businesses from the employer National Insurance rise, shielding 250,000 retail, hospitality and leisure business properties from paying full business rates and have capped corporation tax at 25% – the lowest rate in the G7.
“We delivered a once-in-a-Parliament budget last year that took necessary decisions on tax to stabilise the public finances and fund public services, including the NHS. We are now focused on creating opportunities for businesses to compete and access the finance they need to scale, export and break into new markets.”
