Summer Statement implications for theatres
On Wednesday 8 July, Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced his mini-statement entitled ‘A Plan for Jobs’.
As details of the government’s investment package for the art and cultural sectors had already been announced on Sunday 5 July, it was unsurprising that there was not a huge amount in this statement aimed specifically at theatres. However, some of the measures may still be of interest.
Six-month reduction in VAT from 20% to 5% - this is for goods and services in the tourism and hospitality sectors and it has been confirmed that theatres are included within the scope of tourism and hospitality.
Eat Out to Help Out voucher scheme – any theatre with an on-site restaurant or café is eligible to register for this initiative, where HMRC will refund the food outlet for 50% of the value of the meal. This only applies Monday to Wednesday during August.
We are still waiting for confirmation of whether local authority-owned theatre buildings will fall under the scope of the project to make public buildings greener.
Unfortunately, the Chancellor did confirm that there would be no further extension to the furlough scheme – tapering will begin from August and the scheme will close at the end of October. A Job Retention Bonus will be introduced, giving UK Employers a one-off bonus of £1,000 for each furloughed employee who is still employed as of 31 January 2021. As we have stated previously, the end of the furlough scheme is likely to result in more redundancies across the sector, despite the government investment package.