The Showmen’s Guild has submitted its response to the latest DCMS inquiry exploring the challenges faced by organisers of major sporting and cultural events, highlighting the important role fairs play in the social, economic and cultural fabric of the nation, and the support Showmen need in order to help their businesses thrive.
The Showmen’s Guild has responded to the DCMS’ recent inquiry into the challenges faced by organisers of major events, including feedback on the “unworkable” demands of the Employment Rights Bill and the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025.
Speaking on behalf of Showmen across the country, the Guild called for greater support from local authorities, which remain keen to penalise operators with Community Infrastructure Levies, as well as wider tax reform such as scaled VAT enrolment rates.
“It was decided that The Guild should collectively file a submission with the Association of Circus Proprietors (ACP) to present a combined Show Industry large-scale response,” said the Guild’s Desmond FitzGerald. “After all, both associations have been members side by side in the Event Industry Forum (EIF) since the start of the 2020/21 pandemic.”
“It was important to maximise the opportunity to express our concerns, highlight the scale of the industry, present our ‘asks’ of both DCMS and government overall, and to present our plans for the future, as an important Cultural Heritage industry and community, along with a progressive future to mirror our honourable past.”
FitzGerald described the inquiry as “the moment we had been waiting for” since the Select Committee on Fairs in 2000, allowing the Guild to showcase what has been achieved across the sector in the last quarter of a century, as well as highlighting “the shortfalls we experience from others.”
Outlining what the Guild required of the government, the submission urged ministers to lower VAT rates for outdoor entertainment, noting VAT should be charged on profit rather than turnover, “especially where a loss is made (with no advance customer-payment and loss of business with poor weather) but that VAT is still payable on the turnover (costs.)”
The 7,000 word document also included the Guild’s concern regarding current and planned legislation, including the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act and the requirements of the Employment Rights Bill, which “looks to be unworkable for a seasonal industry like ours, where business fluctuations dictate an uneven pattern of work availability.”
“We also suggested simpler and more cohesive regulation to make working across the country at multiple events easier.”
