Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of Government support to the live events industry on that industry.

No estimate is available currently for this but we will analyse the impact of the funds we have already announced. We are continuing to meet with live events stakeholders to provide support and guidance for venues to re-open and stage live events.

The Secretary of State announced an unprecedented £1.57 billion support package for the cultural sector which will benefit the live events sector by providing support to venues and many other cultural organisations to stay open and continue operating. On Monday 12 October, the Government announced an investment of £257 million in 1,385 organisations including venues, festivals, theatres, museums and cultural organisations, through the first tranche of Culture Recovery Fund: Grants programme, administered by the Arts Council. Over the coming weeks further Culture Recovery Fund awards will be announced - including round two of Grants under £1 million, grants over £1 million, and the Capital Kickstart and Repayable Finance programmes.

The Chancellor has announced the Winter Economy Plan to protect jobs and support businesses over the coming months, once the existing Self-Employment Income Support Scheme and Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme come to end. We are also offering businesses who face a drop in demand for their services and possible cash flow issues generous terms for the repayment of deferred taxes and government-backed loans.

We continue to engage with the sector to discuss the on-going challenges facing the industry.