Divisive LoveIOM gift cards being scrapped 

Government claims scheme was a success but hospitality industry questions benefit

A gift card scheme which government launched to try and boost the hospitality sector post Covid is being scrapped.

People with LoveIOM cards will have until the end of July next year to spend their balances with the 65 merchants who signed up.  

The initiative – which was supposed to be a five-year project – was launched in September 2021 following the worst of the Coronavirus pandemic.

Enterprise Minister Tim Johnston said: "As with other Covid recovery projects the time has come for this scheme to conclude.

"Our objective was to create a flexible tool to stimulate demand in the local economy during the Covid-19 recovery and provide targeted support to the hospitality sector during the cost-of-living crisis, which the gift card platform has done successfully."

The scheme was heavily criticised by politicians and members of the industry it was supposed to support.

In October last year some Tynwald members questioned whether it was worthy of continuing with one MHK branding it a ‘complete failure’.

Figures released at that point showed 2,500 cards had been sold in just over a year with £100,000 added to them.

Government had spent £200,000 of taxpayers’ money building the LoveIOM platform and £14,000 incentivising spending through the scheme which had half a million pounds of funding allocated to it.

The head of Business Isle of Man described it as a ‘challenging project’ during an Economic Policy Review Committee.

Dr Michelle Haywood is a political member for Business Isle of Man and says it’s ‘run its course’:

The LoveIOM scheme was also criticised by many in the hospitality industry who claimed it was a ‘non-starter’ and was not what the industry wanted.

Pub landlord Andy Saunders is the chair of the Licensed Victuallers Association.

He says the scheme was of limited benefit: