The Meetings Industry Association (mia) has slammed prime minister Boris Johnson over the scrapping of the October date for the reopening of business meetings and events.
Jane Longhurst, chief executive of the mia, accused Boris Johnson of a lack of respect and said that the industry has been "hung out to dry". She also vowed that the mia will continue its fight for support for business meetings and events, following Johnson’s announcement that conferences and exhibitions will not be allowed to run from 1 October.
Longhurst said: “As the Prime Minister has confirmed that its latest ruling would be in place for ‘upwards of six months’, this is a further devastating blow for our sector, which has already been truly decimated by the impact of the pandemic.
“Without a clear re-opening date and no clear idea if there is going to be any support forthcoming, this industry has simply been hung out to dry.
“Organisers I have no doubt will already be cancelling their events for the next six months, which means a repeat of the cash-flow drain, experienced by venues and booking agents in the spring.
“When we finally get the go ahead to re-open, it is going to take many, many months to re-build booker confidence and many years to see any form of recovery.
“Throughout the course of this pandemic the industry has worked hard to demonstrate the harrowing implications of its impending demise, calling upon urgent support where all forms of operations and revenue generation has been blocked by government.
“Venues have been tirelessly coordinating and implementing now redundant government plans, investing heavily depleted financial resources to ensure they have all the necessary requirements in place to ensure they are COVID-Secure, and with today’s announcement we are simply not being respected – in fact it’s much worse than that – we have been simply ignored. The Prime Minister thought it much more relevant to comment about the lack of spectator sport than he did
the thousands of jobs across the UK that are reliant on the business meetings and event sector.
"We already know that venues have averaged a £2,398,600 loss of business to date, but unlike other sectors, business meetings and events has only received the basic package of support. This is revenue that simply cannot be borne any longer. Venues will be closing; more jobs will be lost. We need financial support as quickly as possible – without it what hope does the industry have of saving the 140,000 jobs that are on the line at the end of the furlough scheme.”
M&IT editor Paul Harvey is a journalist with more than 15 years of experience. He began his career in the local press, working for various titles across the north. Since joining M&IT in 2013, he has become a trusted and respected voice in the sector, championing event professionals and reporting on all aspects of the events industry for the brand.
