Explained: Why Andrew Lloyd Webber, Peter Gabriel and others moved court against the British government

English composer Andrew Lloyd Webber and others from the live events industry have decided to move court against the British government. The live music events industry wants the government to share its findings from the live events pilot scheme, reported BBC. What is the live events pilot scheme? The scheme that was supposed to be released last week has still not been given to the event organisers. The UK’s Events and Research Programme (ERP) aims to examine the risk of COVID-19 transmission from attending events. The events including the Brit Awards, FA Cup Final and the Download festival have been tested under this programme. Who all have decided to move court? Webber is joined by theatre producer Cameron Mackintosh and musician Peter Gabriel along with Live, the UK trade body of the music industry. Previously, as a part of the pilot scheme, the government had offered Webber to open Cinderella, his new musical, at its full capacity. However, the composer had refused in solidarity with others from the live events industry. According to the publication, the group has said in their statement that the potential four-week delay in reopening will cause them to lose hundreds of millions of pounds. Several theatre productions and as many as 5,000 live music events will be cancelled because of the delay, said the group. The statement by live events industry heavyweights also said that the government has chosen to keep the live events industry under restrictions till 21 June whereas other industries have been allowed to operate. The Government’s stance on the matter On the other hand, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport has said that the report will be published before the move to step four. It also said that they are helping the creative industries and sporting bodies with the challenges they may face for full reopening. Nigel Huddleston, UK’s culture minister has also told the parliament that the data will be published very soon along with the guidelines for reopening of the events.