Yes, allow me to get SEISS funding. As a recently self employed person, I did not qualify for funding due to previous years tax returns not amounting to 50% of my profits, even though the 12 months previous to the Pandemic i was solely self employed and can prove it

Vaccine passports

The return of Conferences, Banquets and Exhibitions, which have been the mainstay of my work the past 3 years are inevitably going to be the last to return as businesses will be unlikely to take the risk of allowing staff to attend these type of events until the pandemic has been officially declared over. Even then the reduced overheads of not holding these type of events is going to take a long time to return to previous levels, which I why to too the decision to invest in the equipment to do the online conference work.

The main thing that would help people like myself is some kind of plan going forward. It appears that the government in wales are ‘winging it’ in relation to when live events can restart. We need a time line of when we can start to plan for events to happen safely. Also there need to be government back insurance to allowed events to happen from a financial perspective.

The 3million people excluded from existing support need to be considered and helped, for many it is already too late. A clear roadmap needs to be communicated which takes into account the prevailing approach of the devolved nations, at the moment the clearest understanding I have is from We Make Events, which while helpful means there are many people who I fear are labouring under false hope

Some Government financial support for more of the Self-Employed would be welcomed. I have been unable to claim current support as more than 50% of my earnings comes from short-term/PAYE Freelancer work that I undertake, which is highly frustrating considering I have been a UK Tax-payer all of my working life. Just being eligible for the SEISS would be of some help and support. The current SEISS does not support enough Self-employed freelancers. Even with the recent Budget announcements, there are still many people that are not eligible for this support. If a 'vaccination passport' to show who has been vaccinated against COVID means we can all get back to working at/running live events safely both indoors and out, then I would very much support such a scheme.

Once the Vaccination program for all adults has been done events should be allowed to continue in line with other tourist attractions and opening up of hospitality.

Not event-industry-specific - but being one of the hundreds of thousands who were excluded from the SEISS on a technicality, the one thing which could be done for maximum benefit to the most people is either to make the SEISS far more accessible and less discriminatory than it is, or to introduce a universal basic income to those sectors, such as live events and the arts, which are forced into a state of shutdown.

Mobilise the events sector to help with vaccines and testing roll out.

Just set a date , allow the event industry to guide the assembly as they don't understand our needs. stop all the messing around people are dieing what ever , the numbers of people dieing from covid is far less than people with other health issues , its a total face, just get on with life and stop the control. Put money in to bounce back events, like die out to help out go out to a show to help out the scheme

I'd rather we stay in lockdown for longer and get rid of the virus; reopen with more confidence. We depend on the vaccine and the enforcement of current regulations. All we can do is follow the rules and support one another.

Govnt. backed event insurance - cancellation insurance. Support/education for local authorities and licence authorities to understand that Artists and Companies have useable, well-planned RAs ready to deliver scaled socially distanced covid-safe outdoor shows and events and events for smaller than usual audiences. Financial support for reduced audience-size concerts, gigs and shows, etc. Better, local health authority run track and trace (NOT the ineffective privatised call centre fiasco). Test events with official monitoring to trail safe spaces and socially distanced events.

Give stand alone events like outdoor food and craft festivals a clear, dedicated set of regulations and guidelines so that we do not fall ‘between the cracks’ for other industry sectors. I have been told by Conwy that I can run my events (I need a TEN) provided I have table service like a pub!!! 30 exhibitors trying to sell to tourists under these conditions! Total STUPIDITY.

Event organisers are too nervous to make any plans or book any events with the level of uncertainty over the timetable slipping and their event getting cancelled. Planning hybrid events to cover both eventualities happening is too expensive. With government backed event insurance, organisers for all events would be much more likely to move plans along towards holding an event this year. We cannot afford the costs to plan an event with the limited cash flow available.

Creating government underwritten Covid cancellation insurance. Working with the industry like the they have with the tv industry to work out safe practices in the summer for work. Having a universal approach to this nationwide and not letting individual local authorities and public health officials decide what is happening for each individual event, the planning and licensing needs to be agreed and stuck to by everyone.

Continue and speed up the vaccination programme. Introduce some form of vaccination passport to allow those vaccinated priority access to event venues. Increase the fines for those breaking lockdown regulations to help speed up the reduction of the R number.

At times when cinema is allowed to operate in Wales, live performances should be allowed also. It makes no sense that venues are allowed to use their auditoria for screening films, but not stage a live performance in the same space. As well as the current level of support, additional grants should be available to venues to subsidise socially distanced reopenings. Many physical buildings are (completely understandably) using all of their funding to mothball. By having funds which can only be used to support reopening, this would create work for freelancers. Grant funding and advice should be available venues to make necessary changes (e.g. improved ventilation) to ensure they are ready to open when the time comes.

Although it will be extremely difficult I believe that if we continue in a strict national lockdown with proper isolation processes in place for overseas travellers (eg. hotel quarantining for 14 days) it will help our cause longer term. We should follow the examples of Taiwan and New Zealand, both of whom have been able to bring cases down to zero which made it possible for them to return to hosting mass gathering events months ago. As much as we all want to return to events as soon as possible we need to ensure that it won’t be short lived. The impact of restarting events and then having to go back into another national lockdown or firebreaks later in the year would be devastating. In the meantime, we should lobby the government to allow the event industry to assist the NHS in the mass vaccination effort across the country. We have the skills and the people power to do so. When it is safer the industry should resume with physical demonstrations to highlight our cause for further financial support from government while we can still not operate.

Acknowledge the events industry is not hospitality and fund the events industry as we’ve been closed since March 2020, or provide target sector grants not loans for event suppliers and venues who haven’t received a penny. And the Welsh government to provide a roadmap for live events along with many other industries. We need at least 3 months to plan, so we can’t just open next week and start earning.

1. Cancellation Insurance underwritten by the Government. 2. Road map back to live gigs with dates. 3. Keep VAT on tickets at 5%