A new levy on arena and stadium tickets and a cut in VAT are
urgently needed to support grassroots music venues across the
country as they struggle to cope with a crisis of closures and
soaring costs, MPs say today.
The recommendations are in a report from the cross-party Culture,
Media and Sport Committee, which highlights how small local
venues integral to the pipeline of professional creative and
technical music talent are stopping performances or closing
entirely at a rate of two per week.
The Committee also heard about how artists are facing a “cost of
touring crisis”, while promoters are struggling to get shows off
their spreadsheets and into venues.
On top of immediate financial help through a levy-funded support
fund and a targeted temporary VAT cut to help stem the tide of
closures, the report says a comprehensive fan-led review of live
and electronic music should be set up this summer to examine the
long-term challenges to the wider live music ecosystem.
The Committee inquiry, launched at the Music Venue Trust's Venues
Day in October 2023, heard from across the sector1 of
the scale of the crisis facing venues and the impact this is
having on artists and all those that rely on them for business.
The MVT described 2023 as the most challenging year for the
sector since the trust was founded in 2014, while Creative UK
said the grassroots music sector took a ‘battering'.
In total the number of GMVs declined from 960 to 835 last year, a
net decrease of 13%, representing a loss of as many as 30,000
shows and 4,000 jobs.
The report says that given the urgency of the crisis, a voluntary
levy on arena and stadium concert tickets would be the most
feasible way to have an immediate impact, creating a support fund
for venues, artists and promoters administered by a trust led by
a sector umbrella body. The Committee also calls for the industry
to ensure the levy cost is not passed on to music fans. If there
is no agreement by September or if it fails to collect enough
income to support the sector, the Government should step in an
introduce a statutory levy, the report adds.
On VAT relief, the Committee calls for a temporary cut based on
venue capacity, with the Government undertaking analysis to
assess the impact to inform future decisions.
Dame MP, Chair of the Culture,
Media and Sport Committee, said:
“We are grateful to the many dedicated local venues who gave up
their time to take part in our inquiry. They delivered the
message loud and clear that grassroots music venues are in
crisis. The ongoing wave of closures is not just a disaster for
music, performers and supporters in local communities up and down
the country, but also puts at risk the entire live music
ecosystem. If the grassroots, where musicians, technicians, tour
managers and promoters hone their craft, are allowed to wither
and die, the UK's position as a music powerhouse faces a bleak
future.
To stem the overwhelming ongoing tide of closures, we urgently
need a levy on arena and stadium concert tickets to fund
financial support for the sector, alongside a VAT cut to help get
more shows into venues.
While the current focus is on the many grassroots music venues
falling silent, those working in the live music sector across the
board are also under extraordinary strain. It is time that the
Government brought together everyone with a stake in the
industry's success, including music fans, to address the
long-term challenges and ensure live music can thrive into the
future.”
Among the report's other recommendations are for the Government
and Arts Council to make it easier for the live music sector to
apply for public funding and for stakeholders across the industry
to continue to support the Featured Artists' Coalition's campaign
to end punitive fees on artists' merchandise.
