Scotland’s event sectors to receive £65M in aid

The Scottish government has granted nearly £65M in aid to event sectors including music venues, cultural businesses, and the arts. The decision to grant the aid comes after the government put new restrictions on large indoor and outdoor gatherings amid COVID restrictions effective December 26th.

As of December 26th, indoor events where spectators are standing are limited to 100 people, seated events are limited to 200 and outdoor events will be limited to 500 people.  The restrictions will then be reviewed on January 11th.  During this time, the event sectors will receive £19.8m, while music and other art venues will receive £31.5m.  Additionally, any national performance companies that reported losses over Christmastime will receive £2m, museums, galleries, and heritage trusts will receive £1.7m, and freelancers will also receive £10m, and an additional £1m in unspent cash from previous aid will also be dispersed, bringing the total to £65M in aid.

In a statement from the culture secretary, Angus Robertson stated, “We have been engaging with the sector about the impact of the Omicron variant and we are fully committed to supporting culture and events while they recover from the impact of the Covid – and we are aware of just how important they are to Scotland, and indeed the wider recovery from this pandemic. These additional funds will help protect the livelihoods of the people working in the sector – and allow us to give further support to freelancers, culture organizations, venues, and our national performing companies.”

To date, the Scottish government has given £175m worth of aid to the arts.

You can read more about the relief here.

Image Credit: TRNSMT Festival (via Ryan Johnston)