Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Musicians: Cost of Living

Thursday 9 March 2023 · 3 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 3 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Ministerial Questions addressed musicians' challenges during the cost of living crisis.
  • Government highlighted support measures for individuals facing the cost of living crisis.
  • MPs raised concerns about musicians and venue operators considering leaving the industry.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Pete Wishart SNP Perth and Kinross-shire
Economy Culture, Media & Sport
Context

The MP raises concerns about the impact of rising costs on musicians, referencing specific challenges such as earnings from recordings being next to zero and high energy bills. He also cites a survey by Help Musicians indicating that 90% of musicians are worried about paying their next food bill.

Question

I am sure the Minister will want to join me in congratulating Mae Muller on being selected as the UK's representative at Eurovision in Liverpool. Surely the Minister acknowledges that the creative sector has probably been the most heavily impacted sector throughout this cost of living crisis, and that musicians have probably been the most impacted within that sector. Earnings for recordings are next to zero, Europe is effectively closed to them, musicians who want to travel to the US face visa problems, and studios and rehearsal spaces are at great risk because of sky-high energy bills. The charity Help Musicians has found that 90% of musicians—the lifeblood of the music sector—are worried about how they are going to pay their next food bill, and half are thinking about leaving the industry. Does the Minister believe that this is the worst possible time to be an aspiring musician, and what is she going to do to rectify the situation and support our musicians?

Answer from Julia Lopez

As a musician himself, the hon. Gentleman is a tremendous champion of the music industry, and I appreciate all the work he does. He has raised a series of points. On an individual level, the Government have put forward a substantial package to help people through the cost of living crisis including an extension of the cultural recovery fund and Arts Council England's fund for supporting grassroots live music. We are also engaging with US counterparts on issues about US visas and I encourage him to get the industry to engage with that consultation.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The specific ask was not directly addressed; no concrete measures were provided to rectify the situation for musicians.

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Q2 Pete Wishart SNP Perth and Kinross-shire
Employment Culture, Media & Sport
Context

The MP highlights that many musicians are self-employed and face challenges in receiving cost of living payments due to the operation of the minimum income floor, particularly early on in their careers.

Question

Many musicians are self-employed and lose out on cost of living payments, particularly early on in their careers, because of the operation of the minimum income floor. They have variable incomes early on, which was raised on Monday with Department for Work and Pensions Ministers. Will the Minister and her DCMS colleagues give their support to meeting representatives of self-employed musicians, to find a workable way through and to make sure that they are not unfairly penalised by how they build their careers in their early stages?

Answer from Julia Lopez

The Department is very alive to the challenges facing freelancers, and we are looking at this in the creative sector vision. I know that my hon. Friend is passionate about this area, particularly in relation to opera. I assure him that it is something on which we continue to engage with other Departments.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The specific ask was not directly addressed; no concrete commitment to support meetings or provide a solution for the minimum income floor issue.

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Q3 Bob Neill Con
Economy Taxation Business & Trade
Context

The MP raises concerns about grassroots music venues operating at pre-tax profits of barely 0.2% and the potential closure of many due to Brexit, COVID-19, and the cost of living crisis.

Question

Further to the pertinent question asked by my hon. Friend the Member for Perth and North Perthshire (Pete Wishart), industry surveys indicate that half of musicians across the UK are contemplating leaving the industry. Not just individual musicians are affected. Grassroots music venues run at pre-tax profits of barely 0.2%. With the triple whammy of Brexit, covid and the cost of living crisis, many may have to close, destroying the ecosystem that nurtures and sustains emerging talent. What assessment have Ministers made of the potential impact that easing the tax burden on music venues could have on improving the outlook for this important sector of our music industry?

Answer from Julia Lopez

I thank the hon. Gentleman for raising those important questions, some of which we engage on regularly with the Treasury, particularly energy. As I said in my previous answer, we have schemes to support grassroots venues such as the ACE scheme extended until March and we will continue to look at what more we can do to support this important sector.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The specific ask was not directly addressed; no concrete assessment of easing tax burdens on music venues was provided.

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