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

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the decision not to offer a Government-backed reinsurance scheme on the number of live music events that will go ahead in the summer.

We are aware of the concerns which have been raised about the challenge of securing indemnity for live events. Department officials have been working closely with the affected sectors to understand the challenges and to keep the situation under review.

Understandably, the bar for considering government intervention is set extremely high, especially in light of recent announcements including the considerable extension to the furlough scheme and local business support. My officials are continuing to collect evidence of all of the barriers live events are facing to reopening. There are a number of factors which influence the viability of music festivals, and indemnity insurance is only one aspect of this.

We are keeping the situation under review and working closely with Her Majesty’s Treasury on this issue to determine the appropriate and most effective response for the sector within the public health context.