Cameraman left without support now facing ruin
ASELF-EMPLOYED cameraman who has been ineligible for any financial help during the Covid crisis says he and others like him face ruin.
Ed Nash, 42, from Macclesfield, has 18 years experience in the TV industry - largely in sporting events - and worked for the BBC before turning freelance.
Work has always been cyclical and 2020 was supposed to be a busy year for him, with the Euros, Olympics and Paralympics.
But when Covid struck the work dried up - Ed has had just four jobs since March.
His savings are ‘flying out of the door’ because he has fallen through the cracks in government support and he is ‘getting close to having to leave his property’.
He is registered as a limited company as it is difficult to get work otherwise, so his income is mostly from an annual dividend he pays himself rather than a monthly ‘salary’.
If he furloughed himself his payment would be worked out from the salary part of his income, which would be very little but still preclude him from getting paid work.
Ed, who lives near South Park, is also ineligible for council help as he does not have a business property so is living off his rapidly diminishing savings.
He says this situation is replicated throughout the live entertainment and creative industries - and will take a heavy toll.
Ed said: “I lived in shared accommodation into my 40s to try to save money for a house deposit. I’ve watched those savings fly out the door, and will continue to for the foreseeable future.
”The way the outside broadcast industry works is we have busy years between fallow ones. Last year was a pretty slow and this summer is when I’d earn enough to make surviving the previous and following years easier. So the effects of this will be felt through my industry for a long time to come, and although delayed they will be devastating for a lot of people.”
Had Ed set up as a sole trader he would be eligible for help but says this was not possible as he would struggle to secure jobs.
Instead he is officially the director of his own limited company.
Although people often see this as a way to avoid paying as much tax, Ed says he ends up handing over a very similar amount just by a different mechanism.
Live events workers have protested about this state of affairs - with the Excluded Limited campaign - but so far their pleas have fallen on deaf ears. Ed said: “By the government choosing to help 98.5 per cent of the population, but steadfastly ignoring the cries for help from the other 1.5 they’ve essentially drained my life’s savings. Unless something drastic happens they’ve also set me up to be financially ruined heading into what could be the biggest recession for decades.
“And they know they’re doing this. Helping my industry would be a drop in the ocean compared to what they’ve already spent.”
The Treasury has been contacted for comment.