The UK could face a festival “wasteland” in 2021 and beyond, according to its trade body, which says festivals are a “defining part of British culture”. The Association of Independent Festivals (AIF) warned that 92% of member festival businesses could collapse under potential refund requests. It said that the Government is not taking “meaningful action” to protect them and wants it to put in place “measures that could save the independent festival sector”. “There is no safety net for independent festivals, many of which have fallen between the cracks of current Government support measures such as loans and grants. The festival sector at large could face potential refund requests of up to £800 million this summer, it says.

Source: Irish Independent May 12, 2020 23:15 UTC