205,000 meals were consumed and over £1m saved in Milton Keynes last month as part of the Government's Eat Out to Help Out scheme, it has been announced.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak said anyone eating at a participating outlet Monday to Wednesday during the month of August could have a state-funded 50% discount on food and soft drinks up to a maximum of £10, with restaurants claiming the money back from the government.
Now it has ended, official figures have been released showing the total number of registered restaurants, the total number of meals claimed for, the total amount of discount claimed, and the average discount per meal in pounds and pennies in each UK parliamentary constituency.
The data for Milton Keynes has been split into Milton Keynes North and Milton Keynes South. And, in total, 228 restaurants across the borough registered to take part in the scheme.
Throughout the month of August, MKFM provided free marketing to these restaurants both on air and online through our full guide of restaurants taking part in the scheme.
Hundreds of thousands of meals were claimed for (205,000) totalling to a whopping £1,130,000 discount of off meals and soft drinks. The average discount per meal for Milton Keynes North was £5.75 compared to £5.15 for Milton Keynes South.
Nationwide, the total number of meals claimed was 114,156,000 which accounts for a total discount of £659,391,000 in 127,625 restaurants.
These numbers are likely to grow, with restaurants having until the end of September to claim back the 50% government-funded discount applied to bills.
Rishi Sunak said the scheme’s popularity had helped protect the livelihoods of the 1.8 million people working in the hospitality sector and drive the nation’s economic recovery from coronavirus.
He said: "From the get-go our mission has been to protect jobs, and to do this we needed to be creative, brave and try things that no government has ever done before.
"Today’s figures continue to show Eat Out to Help Out has been a success. I want to thank everyone, from restaurant owners to waiters, chefs and diners, for embracing it and helping drive our economic recovery.
"The scheme is just one part of our Plan for Jobs and we will continue to protect, support and create jobs to ensure we come back stronger as a nation."
Additional content by Sky News
