A petition to offer more support to the arts (particularly Theatres and Music) amidst Covid-19 has exceeded 100,000 signatures, having only been set up within the last few days. By attracting more than 100,000 signatures, the petition will now be considered for debate in Parliament.
The petition, set up by Miles Croxford, states “As we pass the COVID-19 Peak, the Government should: State where the Theatres and Arts fit in the Coronavrius recovery Roadmap, Create a tailor made financial support mechanism for the Arts sector & Clarify how Social Distancing will affect arts spaces like Theatres and Concert Venues.
In their plan to restart the economy, the government has addressed hospitality sectors such as restaurants and cinemas. They’ve stated how the sports will be resumed after the lockdown period. But there has been no mention of the arts. On 13 May Robert Jenrick was directly asked to pledge to protect this industry, which could be without income longer than other sectors, but he failed to give a clear answer. This further shows how the arts are being overlooked. The Govt must show more support for arts.”
At the time of writing, the highest number of signatures came from London constituencies, but the petition has attracted support from across the UK, from Orkney and Shetland to St Ives. The single constituency with the highest number of signatures is birthplace of Shakespeare, Stratford Upon Avon. Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden’s Hertsmere constituency has provided 253 signatures, while Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s Richmond (Yorks) has attracted just 91 signatures.
As the petition has passed 10,000 signatures the Government will be required to respond. The next milestone is 100,000 signatures which was passed on Thursday (18th June) evening, meaning the petition will now have to be considered for debate.
This doesn’t necessarily mean a debate in the chamber, sometimes petitions are debated by a smaller number of MP’s in other parts of the Parliamentary Estate, such as Westminster Hall.
The more signatures the petition attracts, the more likely it is that it will receive a well publicised debate, so if you haven’t already please Sign this petition here.
