Calls for insurance scheme intensify in industry letter Thursday, 7 January 2021 A number of MPs and live event specialists have signed an open letter to Rishi Sunak in a bid to save summer events and more (Photo: Hanny Naibaho) UK - The live events industry has launched a fresh appeal for a government-backed COVID-19 insurance scheme with a letter signed by 120 sector representatives and MPs. In the letter, written by the chair of the DCMS committee Julian Knight and addressed to the chancellor Rishi Sunak, the sector - which has largely been shut down since March 2020 - warns that “[w]ithout insurance, the events we know and love simply won’t take place this year - vaccine or no vaccine”. “Sustaining losses like those we’ve seen in 2020 for another year isn’t an option, and hundreds of businesses in the events supply chain have already been forced to fold,” the letter continues. “The Government has backed insurance for the film and television industry to the tune of £500m. It’s now time to do this for other creative industries.”