UK music festivals and other live events are to be protected by a government-backed insurance scheme if they have to cancel because of Covid.
It will begin next month with a £750m budget to cover cancellation costs if events are legally unable to happen due to government Covid restrictions.
The live events industry, which has repeatedly called for such a plan, broadly welcomed the announcement.
More than half of all music festivals have been cancelled this summer.
Julian Knight MP, who chairs the House of Commons culture select committee, said: “Though it is a shame that it has come too late for some this summer, this scheme will provide the confidence the sector needs to plan and invest in future events.”
Promoter Live Nation UK called it a “vital intervention” that would give the sector “certainty”.
However, there are concerns that it will just pay out if events are banned by another lockdown. The Musicians Union said “the major problem” with the scheme is that it does not cover events that would become uneconomical if social distancing came back into force.
The Association of Independent Festivals welcomed the scheme, but said it doesn’t “cover a festival needing to reduce capacity or cancel due to social distancing restrictions being reintroduced”.
Making the announcement, Chancellor Rishi Sunak said the lack of “the right kind” of insurance had proved “a problem” for the UK’s live events industry.
“As the economy reopens I want to do everything I can to help events providers and small businesses plan with confidence right through to next year,” he said.
“With this new insurance scheme, everything from live music in Margate to business events in Birmingham can go ahead with confidence.”
Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden called it “an important next step” for the live events sector, and said it would give organisers “the confidence they need to plan for a brighter future”.
Jamie Njoku-Goodwin, head of trade body UK Music, said: “We are extremely grateful to government for listening to the calls of the sector and delivering a solution to the market failure in the insurance industry.”
The government also published endorsements from the Events Industry Alliance, the Meetings Industry Association and the organisers of Southampton International Boat Show.
Events companies will be able to of purchase the cover from next month, with the scheme set to run until September 2022.