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<p>We appreciate the important role that the music industry plays in the UK’s economy,
and that the Covid-19 pandemic presents a significant challenge to the sector.</p><p>The
Chancellor has announced the Winter Economy Plan to protect jobs and support businesses
over the coming months, once the existing Self-Employment Income Support Scheme and
Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme come to end. From November, the Jobs Support Scheme
will provide further support to returning workers, while the extended Self-Employed
Income Support Scheme will aid the self-employed who are currently actively trading
but are facing reduced demand.</p><p>We are also offering businesses who face a drop
in demand for their services and possible cash flow issues generous terms for the
repayment of deferred taxes and government-backed loans. We will give all businesses
that borrowed under the Bounce Back Loan Scheme the option to repay their loan over
a period of up to ten years. This will reduce their average monthly repayments on
the loan by almost half. We also intend to allow CBILS lenders to extend the term
of a loan up to ten years, providing additional flexibility for UK-based SMEs who
may otherwise be unable to repay their loans.</p><p>In addition, the Secretary of
State announced an unprecedented £1.57 billion support package for the cultural sector
which will benefit the live music sector by providing support to music venues and
many other cultural organisations to stay open and continue operating.</p><p>£3.36
million was shared among 136 venues across England who applied for the Emergency Grassroot
Music Venues Fund, as part of this support package. This funding aimed to support
those grassroots venues to survive the imminent risk of collapse caused by the coronavirus
pandemic.</p><p>We continue to engage with the sector to discuss the on-going challenges
facing the industry.</p><p> </p>
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