£0.5million Domestic Events Fund announced to encourage the creation of local events Island-wide

Business Isle of Man, an Executive Agency of the Department for Enterprise, has announced a new £500,000 Domestic Events Fund to support local authorities, businesses, individuals and charities island-wide with the development of local events.

The initiative is supported under the £100m Economic Recovery Fund announced by Treasury Minister Alfred Cannan MHK in his budget update to July’s Tynwald.

The new fund is intended to support increased domestic spending over the autumn/ winter period, running up to the 31^st March 2020.  Event organisers can apply for up to 80% of costs associated with the development of new, domestic focused events. Eligible events such as local markets, festivals, shows, concerts must be focussed on increasing domestic spending, in turn supporting local businesses with their coronavirus recovery. Qualifying costs include equipment, entertainment, marketing, insurance, health and safety, and an event organiser.

Political Member with responsibility for Business Isle of Man, Lawrie Hooper MHK, commented:

‘I’m extremely pleased to announce the launch of the Domestic Events Fund as a new initiative to stimulate and support our domestic economy. The loss of a number of large Island events has resulted in a very difficult time for many businesses, and they are now facing the traditionally quieter winter season with lower than expected financial reserves.

Business Isle of Man are working closely with Town and Village Commissioners across the Island to bring forward a number of events and I encourage any organisation interested in running a public event to take a look at this new fund. Community events are an opportunity to promote local products and local destinations as well as providing a great stimulus for local businesses by boosting footfall. We hope these events will help support local businesses affected by the coronavirus lockdown and border closures as well as giving people a chance to experience all that the Island has to offer.’

Tim Cowsill, Head of Business Isle of Man, commented:

‘For many towns and villages, local events play a key part of their strategy to bring in visitors and increase spending in retail and hospitality businesses. With ongoing travel restrictions, many Island residents are choosing to make the most of staycation experiences and remain on the Isle of Man. This therefore provides an opportunity to encourage these individuals to explore the island, travelling to different towns and villages for special events and experiences, in turn increasing their domestic spending throughout the Island.

‘We look forward to working together with Town and Village commissioners across the Island to bring forward a number of new events over the coming months’

Further information about the fund and how businesses, local authorities, individuals and charities can apply will be available next week from www.businessisleofman.com