Statements on the Autumn Budget

30 October 2024 - Press release

UK Music Chief Executive Tom Kiehl said: 
"The Budget,  Labour's first in government for 14 years, is a significant moment as we seek to grow the music industry over the course of this new Parliament. The sector is made up of many small and medium enterprises. Increasing the Employment Allowance to £10,500 will hopefully help many of these music businesses, which contribute greatly to the industry's economic contribution of £7 billion, navigate some of the challenges ahead.

Business rates continue to present a big challenge for many creative businesses, from venues, record stores and studios. The continuation of business rate relief should be welcome, yet at a reduced rate of relief of 40% will mean further interventions will be necessary to support this delicate part of our ecosystem.
It is welcome to see government put further funding into the Creative Careers Programme but as it takes forward a curriculum review to potentially expand creative education this needs to be supported by further investment to ensure we overcome inequality of opportunity to support the industry's future talent pipeline."

Gee Davy, AIM’s interim CEO sais: "AIM commends the government's actions to extend business rates reliefs for the hospitality sector. However, much more support is needed to alleviate the pressures on already super-squeezed independent labels and related music businesses. These homegrown businesses are the beating heart of music – the principal investors in emerging artists and the UK music sector's key employers, putting out 80% of new releases and creating long-term sustainable creative careers. We urgently need a tax credit scheme for music creation, like that which has been so successful in supporting the UK film sector. This would drive growth in music communities across the length and breadth of the UK, keep options open for a diverse range of musicians, grow employment and investment in emerging music, and reinvigorate the UK's position in the global music market."

Jon Collins, CEO, LIVE, said: "We recognise that the Chancellor has had to make tough choices today. We welcome the retention of business rates relief but the decision to reduce this relief will increase costs on grassroots music venues already struggling to keep their doors open. The live music sector is a key contributor to economic growth, generating over £6bn in 2023, and creating positive social, cultural, and economic impact across every city, town and village in the UK. It is critical that the next Budget focuses on growth and enables sectors like live music to achieve their full potential."

Mark Davyd, CEO of Music Venue Trust said: “£7 million in new premises taxes places over 350 grassroots music venues at immediate risk of closure.  Despite extensive briefing to HM Treasury, Department of Culture, Media and Sport and Department for Business and Trade about the negative economic, social and cultural impacts of the removal of the 75% business rate relief for grassroots music venues, the Government has today announced that business rate relief will reduce to 40% from April 1^st, 2025. The immediate impact is to create a demand for £7 million in additional premises taxes from a sector that, in 2023, returned an entire gross profit across all 830 such venues in the UK of just £2.9 million. 43% of grassroots music venues in the UK made a loss in 2023. 

Over 350 grassroots music venues are now placed at immediate risk of closure, representing the potential loss of more than 12,000 jobs, over £250 million in economic activity and the loss of over 75,000 live music events. Simultaneously with announcing this new tax demand, the Government acknowledged the faults and inequities inherent in the business rate system, promising to deliver a new lower rate of taxes on physical, hospitality and leisure premises in April 2026.

The challenges around business rates and grassroots music venues have been known and accepted for over a decade. Changes in April 2026 are to be welcomed, but will be of no use for the hundreds of music venues that are now likely to be lost before this challenge is finally met with a full, long overdue reform. There are three possible solutions:

1. The Government could think again and act upon the extensive data it has received about the impact of unfair and unreasonable premises tax demands and restore the 75% rate relief for grassroots music venues. 
2. The Government could create an emergency fund of a maximum of £7 million and allow venues facing the imminent threat of closure to draw down from this fund sufficient funding to meet the new tax demand. 
3. Every grassroots music venue in the country could install a temporary business rate levy of 50 pence applied to every ticket sold and used directly to meet the £7 million demand. This levy would need to be applied until the new business rate system is installed, predicted by the Government to be on April 1^st, 2026.

Music Venue Trust believes that ticket prices should be kept accessible and is reluctant to encourage venues to adopt option 3. Unless the government is willing to think again, it unfortunately may be the only possible option to stop a complete collapse of live music in our communities.”