PUB giant Greene King has said it will shut dozens of pubs with the loss of 800 jobs after being hit by tighter restrictions in the face of the pandemic.

The company, which has a number of pubs across Dorset, said it will keep 79 of its sites shut for the time being.

Around one third of the closures are expected to be permanent.

Greene King has not yet revealed the pubs it plans to close. 

It called on the Government to provide support for the hospitality sector while tightened restrictions, such as the recent 10pm curfew, remain in place.

A Greene King spokeswoman said: “The continued tightening of the trading restrictions for pubs, which may last another six months, along with the changes to Government support was always going to make it a challenge to reopen some of our pubs.

“Therefore, we have made the difficult decision not to reopen 79 sites, including the 11 Loch Fyne restaurants we announced last week.

“Around one-third will be closed permanently and we hope to be able to reopen the others in the future.

“We are working hard with our teams to try and find them a role in another of our pubs wherever possible.

“We urgently need the Government to step in and provide tailored support to help the sector get through to the spring and prevent further pub closures and job losses.”

Greene King pubs across Dorset

The Westbourne, Westbourne

Broadway, Bournemouth

Brunswick, Bournemouth

Commodore, Southbourne

Spyglass & Kettle, Southbourne

The Cow, Parkstone

Antelope, Poole

Coach & Horses, Wimborne

Kings Head Hotel, Wimborne

St Leonards Hotel, St Leonards

Tap & Railway, West Moors

Sandpiper, Christchurch

Walkford, Christchurch