Christopher BarrettDCMS Committee chair Julian Knight MP has written to secretary of state Oliver Dowden calling for the Events Research Programme to be increased by up to 30 more pilot events over the summer and for the cancellation insurance provided for it by Government to be extended to cover them.
Knight said that in the absence of a wider insurance scheme for the events industry, the Government liability that will enable pilot events to go ahead this summer should be extended to cover a wider range of events to prevent further cancellations. The Government is providing £300,000 in cancellation insurance for events taking place within the Events Research programme.
In the letter, Knight said, “We propose extending the Events Researach Programme and the liability available to the pilot events under it to a wider, yet defined, selection of events scheduled for after 21 June. This would enable the country to enjoy a greater number of culturally significant events this summer, support the economic recovery of the events industry and its supply chains, and build on the investment already being made into the pilots.”
Knight, who led the DCMS Committee inquiry into the future of UK music festivals, said that while the Committee’s preference remains for a comprehensive sector-wide insurance scheme for the events industry, a targeted intervention for 20 to 30 more pilot events over the summer is better than nothing.”