The war in Iran is pushing up the production costs of sporting, music, cultural, and festival events across the UK, with these costs set to be passed directly on to the consumer over the months to come.
The National Outdoor Events Association (NOEA) is monitoring confidence among event producers on a monthly basis, and it is becoming increasingly clear that rising fuel prices, affecting everything from transport to food, are quickly having an impact on event budgets.
“Margins in event production are notoriously tight, and it’s impossible for increases of this level to be soaked up by either the event organisers or the suppliers they work with,” commented Susan Tanner, CEO, NOEA. “When that happens, only one solution remains and that is increasing ticket prices.”
“This doesn’t just mean fewer people can enjoy community events, experiences and enriching cultural moments,” continues Susan. “It means attending events becomes a premium, elitist experience no longer accessible to everyone, and that’s not good enough.”
NOEA are calling on the government (link here to our calls to government paper) to work with the events industry on a series of measures that can protect both events and the millions of spectators that attend them every day, ahead of the industry’s key spring/summer period.
Key Policy Asks
1. Development of a comprehensive national Events strategy, consolidating resources from various Whitehall Departments and agencies, akin to the stature of UKSport and the Arts Council.
Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales all have a coordinated industry and government events strategy, England is the only Home Country without one!!
Integrated Strategy 2030 | Northern Ireland Business Events
Scotland’s National Events Strategy | VisitScotland.org
The National Events Strategy for Wales 2022 to 2030 | GOV.WALES
2. Integration of major business and outdoor events with key governmental industrial and social initiatives.
3. Support across DCMS directorates for the Events Industry, while fully embracing the sector as part of the Creative Industries with support within the DCMS Creative Industries Directorate. Collaboration with government/local authorities
At present, primary government bodies engaged are DCMS and DEFRA, however support is limited and fragmented, with little cross-departmental coordination.
4. Introducing tax allowances, on a par with those available in TV & Film production, which would encourage new events to be introduced in places and at times of the year when capacity is available and additional demand is needed. This would stimulate growth in regions of the UK where additional content/product is needed and could be directed to times of the year when demand needs boosting.
5. Expansion of the Business Events Growth Fund to further support the attraction, expansion, and creation of business-to-business and outdoor events. Targeting strategic timing to capitalise on available capacity and spur additional demand is paramount.
6. Embed events into industrial and social initiatives.
7. International models – Other countries use clearer regulatory frameworks and ring-fenced tourism taxes to fund events — models the UK could adopt.