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

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions he has had with (a) theatres, (b) live music venues, (c) concert halls and (d) arenas on the average capacity that they require to make a profit as the covid-19 lockdown restrictions are eased.

As part of our continued engagement with our sectors, myself and my officials have spoken to many organisations in the arts and culture sectors directly, as well as with our arms-length bodies and sector representatives.

Through this engagement we know that the capacity needed to make a profit varies not just between the sub-sectors, but also between individual organisations and on an even more granular level, depending on what those organisations programme. These considerations, as well as costs relating to staffing, fixed costs, maintenance, production costs, and loans, also impact upon the size of a possible finance gap an organisation may have when considering when and whether to reopen.

We are committed to getting the performing arts sector fully back up and running as soon as it is safe to do so. It is a priority of my department to work with the arts and cultural sectors to address the challenges of reopening. We have released guidance to support the performing arts sector resume activity in line with the roadmap announced by the Secretary of State for Culture last month.