Terror threat is 'heavy blow' for Brussels restaurants and cafés

The impact of the increased threat level in Brussels and the consequent closure of many cafés and restaurants across the city is a 'heavy blow' for the business owners, but there is a level of understanding for the measures, said Marc Van Muylders of Horeca Brussels on Radio 1 on behalf of the association which represents the hotel, restaurant and café industry.

"The hospitality industry is already struggling, but the safety of our guests comes first, of course," said Van Muylders. According to him, the businesses followed the advice of police and security services to close temporarily at the weekend in order for the police to fully concentrate on the anti-terrorist actions.

A closure like this is nevertheless a heavy blow for the industry. "For a lot of businesses, the weekends account for more than half of sales. So if that's lost, they're in trouble," Van Muylders explained.

"But this is an exceptional situation. Afterwards, we'll figure out how to compensate this through the payment of social security contributions, taxes, or rent, for example. For now, though, we just hope the government will find a solution as quickly as possible, so that people can reopen for business."