UK events industry to return to normality by Easter, says secretary of state Dowden

On the day that the UK’s regulatory authorities gave the green light for the roll out of the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccine across the country, the UK secretary of state for the Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, Oliver Dowden said he expected a return to normality for the events industry by Easter. Dowden was delivering the keynote speech at the UK’s Major Events Summit, 2 December and said that the Government’s Winter Plan that enables venues in Tier 1 and Tier 2 areas to host events with audiences was a “glint of light at the end of the tunnel”. He said, “I know it’s nothing like normalcy but at least it provides some progress. Much more importantly that when we look at the path through to Easter, in recent days we have seen a stream of positive news about potential vaccines and testing. I really do firmly believe, and I know the Prime Minister shares this view, that a return to normality is firmly within our sights. “I want to give you certainty about that as soon as I possibly can but I think we are looking broadly in the space of around Easter time.” He said that while 2020 was a terrible year, 2021 would be a year of recovery and 2022 will be a year of celebration.