The future of British music is at risk. We are losing grassroots music venues at an alarming rate and, without government action, we will lose many more.
Grassroots music venues, the very places where artists shape their craft and build a following before moving on to the next stages of their career, have been lost despite more of us than ever before seeing live music. These music venues also account for tens of thousands of jobs in the music industry, from sound engineers to bar staff.
In May 2024, after taking submissions from across the music industry, the Digital, Culture, Media & Sport committee published its Grassroots Music Venues report and recommended that:
"A small ticket levy be placed on arena and stadium shows to invest in grassroots music venues to secure the long-term sustainability of these invaluable community assets and the emerging artist pipeline."
The Labour government has signalled that it will carefully consider the report and its recommendations but we are running out of time. With every passing moment, the future of grassroots music venues fall into further uncertainty.
We call on the government to urgently introduce a ticket levy on the corporate sponsors of large arena and stadium shows, and for the creation of a specific fund to handle funds in order to support Britain's grassroots music venues.