Calls for arena ticket levy and tax relief to stop music venue closure ‘crisis’
A cut in VAT and a new levy on arena and stadium tickets are urgently needed to stop grassroots music venues from closing, MPs have said.
A report by the Culture, Media and Sport Committee said artists are facing a “cost-of-touring crisis”, with venues stopping live music or closing entirely at a rate of two per week.
The cross-party inquiry heard from the Music Venues Trust (MVT), which said 2023 has been the most challenging year for the sector since the organisation was founded in 2014, while Creative UK said the grassroots music sector took a “battering”.
In total the number of grassroots music venues (GMVs) declined from 960 to 835 last year, a net decrease of 13%, representing a loss of as many as 30,000 shows and 4,000 jobs.
The closures come against a backdrop of spiralling costs due to rising rents and energy bills, while audiences are cutting back on expenditure due to the economic climate.
There has also been a behaviour shift among younger people, who are spending less on food and alcohol.
The report calls for a temporary VAT cut based on venue capacity to “stimulate grassroots music activity and help the sector through the current closure crisis”.
The committee has also recommended a widespread voluntary levy on arena and stadium tickets to be in place no later than September, which should be used to create a support fund for venues, artists and promoters and not be passed on to music fans.
MPs said that if there is no agreement by September or if it fails to collect enough income to support the sector, the government should step in to introduce a statutory levy.
‘Music faces a bleak future’
Dame Caroline Dinenage, chairwoman of the committee, said: “We are grateful to the many dedicated local venues who gave up their time to take part in our inquiry.
“They delivered the message loud and clear that grassroots music venues are in crisis.
“The ongoing wave of closures is not just a disaster for music, performers and supporters in local communities up and down the country, but also puts at risk the entire live music ecosystem.
“If the grassroots, where musicians, technicians, tour managers and promoters hone their craft, are allowed to wither and die, the UK’s position as a music powerhouse faces a bleak future.”
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On top of immediate financial help through a levy-funded support fund and a targeted temporary VAT cut, the report says a comprehensive fan-led review of live and electronic music should be set up this summer to examine the long-term challenges to the wider live music ecosystem.
The UK music industry brings billions of pounds into the economy, attracting both domestic and international tourists to live events.
British popstar Adele started out in grassroots venues. Pic: AP
But festivals, electronic music venues, academies and arenas “are not insulated from the impacts” of the crisis and “promoters are less able to put on shows or make them financially viable”, MPs warned.
The report was welcomed by industry figures, though Mark Davyd, chief executive and founder of the MVT, said it has “taken much longer than any of us would have liked to get the positive change we all wanted to see”.
The trust – which represents more than 900 grassroots music venues across the UK – has previously voiced concerns that emerging artists with the potential to be the next Ed Sheeran or Adele – both of whom started out playing in grassroots venues – could find their careers cut off at ground level, never realising their full potential.
They’re getting through 70kg of rice a day and the wholesaler has run out of noodles. Yes, Sumo returns to London on Wednesday.
It’s just the second time a Grand Tournament has been held outside of Japan – and this is a sport that has records going back more than 1,500 years.
It’s 34 years since the Royal Albert Hall hosted the only previous such event on foreign soil – and the appetite for tickets meant all five days sold out immediately.
Much of the focus is on the two grand champions or yokozuna, the 74th and 75th men to attain the rank.
They’re the Mongolian Hoshoryu Tomokatsu, plus Japan’s Onosato Daiki – who this year became the quickest wrestler to achieve the rank in the modern era.
“I’m happy that Sumo is back after so many years,” Onosato said. “I hope I can show the UK fans how fantastic Sumo is.”
“Being a yokozuna has a lot of responsibility,” Hoshoryu told Sky Sports. “We have to show everyone an example of what a yokozuna is – and that’s very difficult.
“My uncle was a yokozuna – and I’m happy to follow in his footsteps. But I came here to London as a yokozuna which he didn’t, so I’m even happier.”
The two are already great rivals.
Onosato Daiki became the quickest ever to achieve yokozuna rank. Pic: AP
At the recent Aki Basho – the most prestigious tournament on the sumo calendar – the pair finished with identical records after 15 days of bouts.
It all came down to a final play-off between the two yokozuna – the first time that had happened in 16 years. It was Onosato who came out on top on that occasion.
Hoshoryu says he is a big fan of basketball and football. He follows Chelsea, although his favourite players are going back a bit: “Didier Drogba and Petr Cech. He’s the ‘keeper. I like this guy!”
Early starts and a hearty stew: The life of a rikishi
The wrestlers – or rikishi – have a rigorous training regime.
They live in communal blocks called stables and practice starts early. Perhaps surprisingly, everyone skips breakfast. After training and practice – and for the younger rikishi, chores – the wrestlers all eat together.
The staple of their diet is chankonabe, a hearty stew packed with meat and vegetables. The feeding of the 40 rikishi who have come over for the five-day tournament is a challenge in itself.
Donagh Collins, the CEO of co-organisers Askonas Holt, said: “We are going through 70 kilos of rice a day. Somebody told me that the wholesaler for the noodles has run out of noodles. We’re really pushing the system here.”
The ring – or dohyo – is just 4.55m in diameter and quite small when two giant wrestlers leap at each other.
The aim of the fights is to either get your opponent onto the floor – or, more spectacularly, shove or hurl them out of the dohyo, so spectators in the ringside seats may be getting extremely up-close to the wrestlers.
The last time the tournament was in Britain, the massive Konishiki, known as the Dump Truck, took centre stage.
The giant Hawaiian was the heaviest-ever rikishi coming in at 287kg – or 45 stone. That’s a lot of wrestler to dodge if he comes falling out of the ring towards you.
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The Royal Albert Hall may be firstly a concert venue, but it has hosted the likes of John McEnroe, Lennox Lewis and even Muhammad Ali.
And for the next five days, the cream of the world of sumo will be thrilling the crowds – provided a new noodle supplier is found.
What is a yokozuna?
Yokozuna is the highest rank in sumo, with its name meaning “horizontal rope” and refers to the rope worn around a competitor’s waist as they enter the ring.
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