It’s a bit like playing peek-a-boo with our social lives. Except every time we’re about to ‘peek’, Downing Street officials tell us there’s a new problem and clamp our hands down over our eyes even firmer.
Caution is needed in such times. But equally, so is good judgment. The 4-week delay to lifting restrictions may seem like a minor hitch to some, but for the events industry, it feels more like another nail in the coffin.
The government announcement to postpone easing restrictions brings with it more cancellations, more thwarted opportunities to revitalise the events industry. All this amid recent studies suggesting that large events without masks are no riskier than shopping. The so-called ‘pilot events’ that went ahead across the UK included a club night in Liverpool, matches at Wembley and the World Snooker Championships in Sheffield. Attendees were required to take a PCR test before and after the event, with results revealing a minimal change in COVID-positivity. A government source told The Times that the data was ‘very encouraging’, adding that the study ‘will help make the case that these large events are not inherently more risky than other parts of the hospitality sector’.
When more concrete evidence comes in, we will know for sure whether or not the asphyxiation of the hospitality sector was justified. More importantly, we will know whether or not the government is justified in continuing to forbid the events industry from restarting the circuit.
Ultimately, there is nothing we can do to recover this last year. The damage, for many, is done, and all that remains is to plot a return to normality. However, one thing we should absolutely avoid is causing more, needless harm to an industry that is already teetering on the edge of collapse. This is simply not a matter the government can afford to muddle their way through unmindfully. If events can be put back on with minor risk to public health, then the opportunity should be seized immediately.
Earlier this year, a hashtag #GovCantSeeUs began circulating on Twitter, launched by business owners across the events industry who considered the government’s lack of financial aid to be pushing an entire industry towards catastrophe. Since then, the situation has worsened, with hopes yet again scuppered for a June release date.
CEO of exhibition contractor Quadrant2Design, Alan Jenkins, comments: ‘We were lucky enough to have reserves that will see us through to the end of this pandemic. For many smaller businesses and freelancers, the word ‘precarious’ doesn’t do justice to the financial situation they find themselves in. If a roadmap with clearer guidelines for re-entry isn’t announced soon, bankruptcy may be just over the horizon for more event companies.’
Overall, the prognosis is looking good for the UK, as we initiate the final stage of our exit plan from hibernation. Sectors like tourism and hospitality are beginning to remerge from their lockdown slumber, benefiting from pent-up consumer demand after so many months of isolation. And yet, while this is good news for everyone, we cannot ignore the reality of one of industries hit worst by the pandemic, still completely silenced by social restrictions, desperately wondering when it can resume business. The events industry is a crucial component of the UK economy, and the government needs to take its case seriously if it wants to pull the industry out of its current financial sinkhole.
