The Manchester City cultural leaders welcomed the national announcement on the early release of funds to help support music venues that would otherwise be facing closure by September, but say more still needs to be done.
In a letter sent to culture secretary Oliver Dowden and chancellor of the exchequer Rishi Sunak on 8 July the Manchester City Council made the case on behalf of the city's cultural venues and organisations for a total funding package for Manchester of £71.8m over the next two years.
The two year funding request on behalf of the city was therefore split broadly in two and included an overall stabilisation package of £36m to stop venues and cultural organisations going bust and closing permanently, and a further stimulus package of £30.7m to re-ignite and boost the city-wide cultural economy over the next two years.
The total amount asked for includes £8.4m to provide immediate direct stabilisation support to fifty music venues and organisations in the city, topped up by an additional £8m over two years to provide a dedicated music stimulus package for the broader music sector in the city. Together this would provide a total of £16.4m for Manchester's music sector to give it both the support it needs to get back up and running, and to help it forward plan confidently.
Councillor Luthfur Rahman, Executive Member for Culture, Leisure and Skills, Manchester City Council, said, "Of course, the support announced so far is welcome - but let's not kid ourselves that this problem is now solved. There's still a long way to go yet until we reach dry land, and more support is still very much needed."
