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

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what plans the Government has to support music businesses in the event that they cannot reopen when the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme ends.

We appreciate that the Covid-19 pandemic presents a significant challenge to the music sector. As you are aware, the Government has provided unprecedented support for business and workers to protect them against the current economic emergency, including the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS), the Self-Employed Income Support Scheme (SEISS), the Bounceback Loan Scheme and business rates reliefs.

The Chancellor has now announced the Winter Economy Plan to protect jobs and support businesses over the coming months, once the existing SEISS and CJRS come to end. This support includes:

• the new Job Support Scheme;

• an extension to the Self-Employed Income Support Scheme;

• an extension of reduced VAT (from 20% to 5%) on concert tickets to March 2021; and

• further concessions on repayment terms, payment deferrals and application windows.

In addition, the Secretary of State provided a major £1.57 billion support package for key cultural organisations to help them through the coronavirus pandemic. This support package will benefit the music sector by providing support to venues and many other organisations to stay open and continue operating.