Christmas on fire: Tree seller says he'll likely 'burn' stock due to fall in shoppers
16 December 2021, 22:35
Christmas tree seller says he'll probably have to burn his trees
This Christmas tree seller told Eddie Mair he was "stuck" with trees which will "probably have to just be burnt" due to a lack of footfall amid a surge in the Omicron variant.
It comes as Professor Chris Whitty has issued a plea for people to cut back on social events and 'prioritise' who they spend time with ahead of Christmas due to the threat from the Omicron variant.
"I sell Christmas trees in the street market," caller David said.
"This is your busy time of year, am I right?" Eddie replied.
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David said: "Don't be silly.
"The past four or five days, we were going from 25-30 trees a day, down to two.
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"I am sitting in the street market at the moment at Canada Water and there are at least three people in the market area, it is deserted.
"I am stuck with 34 trees which will probably have to just be burnt, and I have no Christmas, I don't know where I have to possibly live because all my expenses have gone on stock for Christmas.
"So yes, it is a disaster."
Read more: UK's vital PCR test capacity less than it was a year ago - as Omicron rapidly spreads
