Dansk Live backs bid to cut red tape for festivals

Danish trade body Dansk Live has praised the country’s government for easing regulatory burdens for festivals.

The government is launching eight initiatives aimed at removing bureaucracy for associations as part of its “first blow” against unnecessary regulations, the Ministry of Culture has announced.

One of the goals under the scheme is to enable festivals to obtain multi-year permits for events, rather than the current system of applying for the same permit every year.

Dansk Live director Esben Marcher hails the announcement as “really good news” for the sector.

“It is an area that has caused many problems, especially for the many volunteer-run festivals, and we are very happy that we have been listened to,” he says. “We have met great responsiveness and understanding of the problem from the Minister of Culture, and it is positive that he has stuck to limiting regulatory burdens as one of his focus areas.”

“Organisers will hopefully be spared unnecessary trouble and will be able to focus more on creating good cultural and musical experiences”

The proposal also focuses on more technical challenges, while an initiative for joint guidance will help organisers navigate complicated building regulations more easily.

“It may not sound like a big deal with such a guide, but it will make a huge difference for the organisers and especially their cooperation with the municipalities and authorities, where a guide can facilitate the interpretation of the complicated legal requirements,” says Marcher. “This means that the organisers will hopefully be spared unnecessary trouble and will be able to focus more on creating good cultural and musical experiences.”

The initiatives are the first wave of a larger government effort to challenge the current “troublesome and bureaucratic” rules  and make it easier to be active in an association.

“The associations and the volunteer zealots form the foundation of our democracy,” adds culture minister Jakob Engel-Schmidt. “That is why it is shocking that the amount of counter-paving and paperwork has become so violent that it threatens the commitment of the volunteers.

“We have been talking for far too long that we must do away with the many rules that strain the voluntary work. Now is the time for action. That is why the government is launching a broad and significant effort to break down the tyranny of rules. We are already starting to, among other things, make it easier to hold, for example, markets and small festivals and clear out permits and paperwork for events held every year.”

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