Music venues handed £2.2m as final phase will require long wait
MUSIC venues across Scotland have been saved from permanent closure after being handed a £2.2 million funding boost.
The Scottish Government has allocated the funding to grassroots music venues, which industry leaders say will “stabilise” the cultural sites that are facing an economic crisis amid the Covid-19 lockdown.
But Scots have been warned they will be likely living with physical distancing rules for some time as Nicola Sturgeon stressed a move to the final phase of easing lockdown will not take place after the usual three-week review.
On Thursday, the First Minister outlined the phase three changes, with some taking force from yesterday and others next week and the following week, as pubs, restaurants and hotels re-open – as well as hairdressers and places of worship.
But Ms Sturgeon warned the public to “prepare to be in phase three for a bit longer than three weeks”, with the move to the final phase of lifting the lockdown dependent on Covid-19 no longer being “the big public health risk that it has been for the last three months.”
Moving through phase one, two and three of the Scottish Government’s route map out of lockdown has taken place at pace with three-week reviews allowing the progression as Scotland continues to suppress the virus. But the final step, which would include mass gatherings being allowed, could be some time down the line.
Ms Sturgeon confirmed that from next Wednesday, the number of people who can attend a wedding or civil partnership ceremony or a funeral will rise to 20.
But the changes apply only to the ceremonies and not any linked events such as receptions or wakes.
She also said the limit of 20 people is subject to “strict rules on physical distancing”.
Earlier this week, the UK Government pledged a £1.57 billion rescue package for cultural, arts and heritage institutions – with Scotland’s Economy Secretary Fiona Hyslop yesterday announcing venues north of the Border will receive funding.
Ms Hyslop said: “Earlier this week the UK Government also recognised our calls for more support for culture and heritage and there are a number of areas where immediate support is required, including grass roots music venues and museum.
“We are working closely with each of these sectors to develop support packages and will announce more details in due course.”
She added: “I have agreed a £2.2m fund with the Music Venues Trust for the coming months that will quickly provide much-needed stability to grass roots venues for the coming period.
“I hope this offers some comfort to those in the industry.”
The Music Venue Trust has welcomed the funding, which will keep sites not yet able to re-open afloat until October.
Nick Stewart, Scottish co-ordinator for the Music Venue Trust, said: “We are delighted to have agreed this funding with the Scottish Government, and we thank them very much for their commitment to grassroots music venues.
“This funding will stabilise venues in the short term and prevent permanent closures, and we can begin to plan towards re-opening every venue safely.”
The £2.2m package is intended to cover fixed costs that include rent, non-furloughed staff, servicing debts and utilities.
Nick Stewart, from Sneaky Pete’s music venue in Edinburgh, said: “This provides a lifeline for venues like Sneaky Pete’s whose future hangs in the balance.
“With no income in the pipeline and no reliable timeline for opening, venues’ staff have been distraught, especially as other enterprise or arts funding schemes were inaccessible to them.
“This will provide well-earned relief for these venues, and not before time. At Sneaky Pete’s we can begin to plan our recovery now so that we can bring back music to our community who have really rallied behind us in an incredible way.”
Speaking at her daily media briefing, the First Minister pointed to social distancing measures, warning the public “not to assume those
This funding will stabilise venues in the short term and prevent permanent closures
requirements are going to be lifted any time soon”.
She added: “Until there’s a vaccine, we’re going to be living with elements of this for some time. What we do know is that the lower we can get the levels of it, the more normality we can get back.”
The First Minister said the extended time Scotland is likely to spend in phase three is “partly because of the scale of the changes we will introduce”, warning “we need to really be cautious to assess the impact of those”.
She added: “We also know phase four requires us to reach a judgement that this is not the big public health risk it has been for the last three months.
“I don’t feel we are yet close to that point. I would prepare to be in phase three for a bit longer than three weeks.”
The First Minister called on people to wear face coverings “for the foreseeable future” because “it’s the right thing to do” in enclosed indoor spaces – with the rule becoming mandatory in shops and is already legally required on public transport.
She added: “We’re now starting to go out and about a lot more and that brings much greater risk of the virus spreading.”