Business rate cuts must be matched for the rest of the UK – charity
Laura Harding, Press Association Entertainment Editor
Business rate cuts for pubs, clubs and live music venues across England will “begin to restore the central role” of live music at the heart of towns and cities, according to the Music Venue Trust.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham has announced rates will be cut by 20% for pubs, clubs and live music venues across England from April next year.
The charity, which acts to protect, secure and improve UK grassroots music venues, called for the same relief to be offered across Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Its chief executive, Mark Davyd, said: “Music Venue Trust warmly welcomes this announcement from the government, and its recognition that grassroots music venues are essential to our local communities.
“The 20% additional reduction on business rates from April 2027 is an encouraging first step in a range of opportunities available to Andy Burnham’s new team to not just protect and secure live music, but begin to restore its central role at the heart of our towns and cities.”
He continued: “There remain some issues of implementation of previous reliefs, and we will work with colleagues in government to ensure that all grassroots music venues in England are recognised and eligible.
“We call on Senedd, Holyrood, and the Northern Ireland Assembly to swiftly confirm they will match this much needed support through Barnett formula consequentials.
“Venues in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland must be confident of a level playing field of economic conditions for touring across the UK.”
The discount will apply to nearly 32,000 hospitality businesses but will not be available to the very largest live music venues.
It will cost around £100 million a year.
Mr Davyd called for the cuts to include more venues, saying: “Live music is an ecosystem, and we strongly urge the government to reconsider the limit to the eligibility criteria so that all live music spaces of all sizes qualify, supporting jobs, local economies and communities to access live music.”
The overhaul of business rates will be funded through a review of reliefs for businesses that “do not make a positive contribution to local communities”, such as vape shops and a crackdown on online marketplaces that do not comply with tax obligations, No 10 said.
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