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By Andy Malt | Revealed on Friday 18 November 2022
The reside music business has welcomed a proposed minimize in enterprise charges for small companies proposed in yesterday’s autumn price range assertion from the UK authorities. However little else. And the Music Venue Belief warns that “a number of alternatives to stabilise and develop the reside music sector are being constantly missed”.
Representatives of the reside sector say that requires additional aid for reside music and different night-time companies proceed to be ignored – prompting the Music Venue Belief to name on the British authorities to arrange a reside music fee to think about the challenges going through the business.
In his first price range because the UK’s Chancellor Of The Exchequer yesterday, Jeremy Hunt laid out £55 billion of tax will increase and spending cuts – though there was some assist for individuals on decrease incomes, because the nation grapples with spiralling residing prices and a recession.
There was some assist too for retail, hospitality and leisure companies, with the announcement that enterprise charges might be additional minimize from April subsequent 12 months by nearly £2.1 billion throughout the sector.
Nevertheless, whereas that is one thing that reside music representatives have been requesting for a while, it is just one of many measures they are saying are essential to preserve venues, golf equipment and extra alive. These different measures – resembling a minimize within the charge of VAT on ticket gross sales, just like that instigated in the course of the pandemic – weren’t included within the newest UK price range.
“Whereas we welcome the federal government’s need to deliver stability to the UK financial system, as we speak has supplied little assist to safe the way forward for our £4.5 billion business and the 200,000 individuals it employs”, says CEO of reside music commerce physique LIVE, Jon Collins. “Unprecedented working circumstances are pushing our sector to the brink, as much-loved venues shut their doorways, excursions are cancelled and artists drop out of the business”.
“The pandemic hangover mixed with the elevated price of residing has led to 54% of individuals stating they’re much less disposed to attending reside leisure, placing unimaginable strain on the reside music sector”, he goes on. “As we speak, we renew our name for a reintroduction of a decrease VAT charge on ticket gross sales to inject money into the underside line of struggling companies, deliver us in step with many different European nations, and safe the way forward for reside music for all”.
CEO of the Night time Time Industries Affiliation, Michael Kill, provides: “This authorities is responsible of neglecting hundreds of companies and tens of millions of staff and freelancers throughout the night time time financial system, this price range has not gone far sufficient and nonetheless lacks readability, and can no doubt see an enormous swathe of SMEs and impartial companies disappear within the coming months”.
“When companies ought to be making ready for the busiest interval of the 12 months, they’re now having to think about their future, and can bear in mind the fourth failed try to ship a price range to safeguard companies on the sharpest finish of the disaster”, he continues. “There isn’t a consideration for the human impression, this can have a devastating impact on not solely enterprise house owners, however the people and households who’ve dedicated their lives and livelihoods to this sector”.
In the meantime, head of the Music Venue Belief, Mark Davyd, mentioned that the federal government ought to launch its personal reside music fee to look at the challenges going through the grassroots music business – on condition that it has repeatedly ignored requires assist from the sector itself.
“Music Venue Belief welcomes the federal government’s announcement that the retail, hospitality and leisure aid on enterprise charges, which incorporates nearly all of UK grassroots music venues, might be prolonged from 50% to 75% from 1 April 2023”, he says in response to the price range. “Nevertheless, we have now written to the Treasury to ask that they make clear the assist being supplied to venues with values in extra of £110,000 – the autumn assertion lacks readability on what’s proposed for such venues”.
Davyd additionally notes that the federal government dedicated to hold out a full evaluate of enterprise charges on grassroots music venues again in January 2020. Nevertheless, this has not but occurred. “We strongly urge the Chancellor and Prime Minister to deliver ahead that evaluate on the earliest alternative”, he says. “The UK has the best stage of premises taxes on grassroots music venues in Europe”.
And it’s not solely premises taxes which are excessive, he provides. “The UK [also] continues to have the best charge of VAT in Europe on reside music tickets. This should change so the UK can compete”.
“The federal government states it’s dedicated to stability and progress”, he notes. “Regardless of its welcome motion to supply some stability round enterprise charges for an additional twelve month interval, the a number of alternatives to stabilise and develop the reside music sector are being constantly missed, price range after price range, assertion after assertion”.
“Our grassroots music venue sector creates 29,000 jobs, delivering over 170,000 performances to greater than 20 million individuals”, he provides. “It’s a important sector with actual alternatives to ship progress, however that isn’t recognised and acted upon on this autumn assertion”.
“In gentle of those missed alternatives, Music Venue Belief requires the federal government to arrange a reside music fee”, he goes on. “This physique will be charged with contemplating the numerous alternatives to stabilise and develop the reside music sector, with the intention of informing future authorities coverage in order that these alternatives will not be constantly missed”.
“A reside music fee can present the federal government with the instruments it wants to have the ability to recognise the unimaginable asset the UK has in its grassroots music venues and make sure that future coverage protects, secures and improves them”, he concludes.
At this stage, given what number of occasions the federal government has did not enact requests for aid from a number of music business organisations, it’s in all probability protected to say that these are issues that the governing Conservative Get together merely doesn’t wish to do. Nevertheless, we will see if any of those calls are heeded within the coming months.
