#fmbewords – Unfair Uncertainty
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This stinks –
and is indicative of a total lack of urgent consideration from the government.
The events sector continues to be hammered by uncertainty and FMBE is joining the call for a Government backed indemnity or contingency that will allow events to get COVID insurance. It may be too late for Boomtown but the economy, the fans and the event industry definitely don’t need any more fall out at this uncertainty.
The mood for events and the need for them is more heightened than ever. Boomtown was a 66,000 sell out, tickets that will now be deferred or refunded.
Our astonishingly capable and resilient events builders are – remarkably enough – ever ready.
Returning from COVID hibernation is already immensely challenging, but this is just one of a triple set of blows this week to the events industry.
3 news stories, 3 days…
First, we had conspiracist anti-vaxxers and antilockdowners campaigning against the government endorsed pilot events, preferring to see them as facilitators of vaccine passports rather than proof that safe events won’t need vaccine passports.
Yep – antilockdowners who are actively campaigning against the return of live events.
When one of the government’s sanctioned events gave way… no help forthcoming – https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/…/comedy-club…
Then we had opportunist billionaires throwing football into total disarray ahead of the proposed Euro finals this summer in London. These gormless-yet-gilded miseries actively took advantage of their own empty stadia to rush out their have-it-all cartel.
In this case though the government was quick to show its allied agility, taking immediate sides with ‘the devil you know’ in that power struggle. Though of course the threat to the flag-waving nationalism of the Euros was a firework vs a rainbow when compared to the egalitarian social equality of dancing. I’m not sure Johnson vibes.
Now this. Boomtown has folded its hand having gambled on the powers that be being sensible enough to listen to, and resolve, a pretty straightforward proposal.
Sure, if an unanticipated COVID crisis emerges between now and August we may have to rethink the return of large scale events, but surely it is a small gamble worth going for? As a nation, we are on schedule, and as jabbed as jabbed can be.
The government pretends to understand the necessary salve of live entertainment. But Brexit prioritised the 987M fishing industry over the 5.2Bn music industry, £1,1bn from live. The lobby to facilitate pan-European live touring choked on fish.
Perhaps the mistake of the events industry has been to negotiate openly and with integrity.
Would someone please sneak Matt Hancock some shares in the events industry so that we can fix this via the fast track?
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