Paul Reed: Last News

Brexit, is likely to impact this summer’s events season.The warning comes from the Association of Independent Festivals, ahead of the AIF Festival Congress 2022 taking place in Bristol today (February 15).AIF CEO Paul Reed made the comments during his opening remarks to indie festival promoters, arguing that while there is widespread optimism about the full return of the festival season, there will be trouble and challenges ahead for the live music industry as a whole.Reed said that while the UK “may be emerging from the shadow of the pandemic, this year will not be a case of ‘back to business as usual’ without critical support for festival organisers”.“We are facing a perfect storm in many ways,” he said. “I’ve spoken with many [festival organisers] in the last few weeks about supply chains, loss of skilled workforce, 20-30 per cent increase in costs across the board and a government-backed insurance scheme that isn’t simply isn’t fit for purpose despite our best efforts.”The AIF echoed fears that the government’s £750million Live Events Reinsurance scheme “simply isn’t fit for purpose”, with many festival organisers not taking it out due to “limited scope and excessive cost, so isn’t enabling organisers to plan with confidence”.Reed and the AIF are calling on the government for further support, with suggested measures including continued VAT relief on tickets beyond the end of March, a backed loan scheme for suppliers and to remove tax incentives to use certain biofuels to allow for use of greener fuels at festivals.Among the other main issues, Reed noted that suppliers lacked cash reserves to invest into inventory in a year when there will be near “unprecedented demand and event activity”.