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

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of providing a Government-backed insurance scheme to musical festivals that may have to cancel events planned for summer 2021 as a result of the covid-19 oubreak; and if he will make a statement.

We are aware of the concerns which have been raised about securing insurance for live events.

Understandably, the bar for considering Government intervention is set extremely high. Given the high costs involved in setting up a scheme we need to make sure it is the most effective use of funds at a time when we are looking at how best to support the sector.

The evidence of market failure must clearly demonstrate that such a scheme is the only barrier to staging events. At the moment, progress with the vaccine rollout and beating the virus is crucial in achieving the next stages for large events as set out in the roadmap.

We are working closely with the sector to determine the appropriate and most effective response within the public health context. We will continue to engage with HMT on this matter.