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Dutch gov and Fieldlab advance plans for pilot events

The government is looking into plans for pilot shows which could lead to the return of full-capacity events next year

By IQ on 09 Oct 2020

Mysteryland festival joined Green Deal Circular Festivals

Fieldlab highlights the social and economic importance of festivals such as Mysteryland returning


Fieldlab Events, a government-backed initiative representing the events sector during the pandemic, has met with Dutch ministers to advance plans for pilot events.

The consultation comes after Fieldlab published a proposal, developed in collaboration with academics, asking the government for permission to conduct pilot events with rapid testing as a stepping stone for a full return to live.

During the consultation, the ministers agreed to submit the paper to the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) for assessment and further advice, before a cabinet decision is made.

In the proposal, Fieldlab calls for a decision on full-capacity events by 1 January to avoid “billions in losses”.

“The event industry has extensive experience in developing and applying safety protocols which is ignored”

“The event industry, just like aviation, public transport and the healthcare sector, has extensive experience in developing and applying safety protocols. This experience gets ignored by the government. The ultimate goal is to create a safe and healthy environment within which events can take place with 100% visitor capacity,” reads the paper.

The paper goes on to cite the economic and social function of popular Dutch events such as Eurovision Song Contest, Pinkpop, Mysteryland and Lowlands – which have a collective reach of more than half a billion people – and the necessity of these events taking place with full-capacity next year.

Fieldlab will become part of the rapid test programme of VWS, which provides insights that give the sector the opportunity to implement rapid testing in the organisation of events.

The joint initiative was founded in June this year with the goal to bring the events industry back to normal. Fieldlab is a joint initiative from the events sector, united with the EventPlatform, the Alliance of Event Builders and the government, along with science and health bodies.

 


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