Pressure is ramping up on the Government to help the hospitality industry as it faces a "dire" situation during the coronavirus pandemic.

Boris Johnson's approach has been condemned as "staggeringly reckless".

Industry leaders have warned firms will go out of business without urgent state help to get through the next few months.

High-profile figures including chefs Simon Rimmer and Raymond Blanc have joined calls for the position to be made clear after the Prime Minister told people to stay away from bars and restaurants but stopped short of ordering entertainment venues to close.

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has also warned most firms will not have the right cover allowing them to claim compensation if they are forced to shut.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak will set out a new package of support on Tuesday afternoon for businesses hit by the outbreak.

Many have said while they understand the need to protect public health, the lack of an enforced shutdown means businesses cannot claim insurance.

Blanc claimed the hospitality industry is being "sacrificed" and "battered", accusing Mr Johnson of a lack of clear direction, while Rimmer said it will not take long for his sites to go out of business.

He tweeted: "We have no insurance claims to protect us as it's not an enforced closure. It won't take long for us to go out of business permanently."

Blanc said businesses across the spectrum from "humble bistros" to Michelin star establishments have been left "in... no man's land".

An ABI spokesman said: "Irrespective of whether or not the Government order closure of a business, the vast majority of firms won't have purchased cover that will enable them to claim on their insurance to compensate for their business being closed by theCoronavirus.

"Standard business interruption cover - the type the majority of businesses purchase - does not include forced closure by authorities."

The British Beer and Pub Association has written to Mr Johnson, demanding urgent steps are taken to prevent mass job losses and permanent pub closures.

The association's chief executive Emma McClarkin said the industry is facing "an existential crisis" as a result of the new guidance, insisting thousands of jobs will be lost without financial help from the Government.

She said: "Forced pub closures without a meaningful support package will have a catastrophic financial and social impact."

The letter calls for the Government to cancel all business rates payments for six months, as well as all tax payments including PAYE, VAT and corporation tax for pubs and hospitality businesses.

It also calls for the cancellation of beer duty payments for six months, and the postponement of the planned national minimum and living wage increases due in April.

At a press conference in Downing Street on Monday afternoon, Mr Johnson advised: "You should avoid pubs, clubs, theatres and other such social venues."

Asked whether pubs, restaurants and theatres were being ordered to close, the Prime Minister said: "What we are doing is giving very strong advice that public venues such as theatres should no longer be visited."

He said enforcement powers are there if needed, but added: "I don't believe it will be necessary to use those powers."

Mr Johnson added: "We are going to make sure that we do everything we can to give them the liquidity that they need."

UKHospitality chief executive Kate Nicholls said the guidance left the industry in "limbo with no recourse to insurance", describing it as "catastrophic" for businesses and jobs.

A Change.org petition calling for the Government to provide clear financial and practical support and to set out a timeline "so businesses can prepare logistically and rationally for times ahead" had gained more than 73,000 signatures by Tuesday morning.