Bristol looking to launch £1 ticket levy “to transform the music industry in the city”

nme.com:

the BBC. “Those conversations are ongoing, so it’s actually really interesting to see a really positive local solution being developed in this area,” he said.Earlier this year, a government committee of UK MPs recommended a levy on arena and stadium gigs, similar to schemes used by the Premier League in football and in other countries to support venues amid a difficult economic climate in which venues are closing at a rate of around two per week.

The Music Venue Trust had made the case in Westminster for a levy on tickets on gigs at arena size and above and for major labels and such to pay back into the grassroots scene, arguing that “the big companies are now going to have to answer for this” after 125 venues closed their doors in 2023.Several artists have introduced a levy voluntarily on their own gig tickets, including Enter Shikari, Sam Fender and Alien Ant Farm.

Meanwhile, Coldplay pledged last month to donate 10 per cent of all profits from their 2025 UK stadium shows to grassroots venues, which the MVT’s Mark Davyd told NME was a “lifeline for new talent”.Although Davyd estimated that 2024 will see fewer venue closures than 2023, “probably one in every five venues in the country is currently facing the threat of permanent closure.”“I think there is a ticking clock,” he continued. “That clock is going to tick for as long as iconic music venues don’t close down – as happened with Bath Moles – or that the venues stick at it but come to us for help.“People need to know: this is the highest number of venues facing closure that we’ve ever dealt with in one year.