August 20, 2018
Nearly three in four Canadians (72%) are in favour of financial intervention from the federal government to help festivals and events ensure the safety of participants, says a Léger survey commissioned by FAME and the Regroupement des événements majeurs internationaux (RÉMI).
To the question “How safe do you feel when you attend festivals and events in Canada?” 80% of respondents answered “very safe” or “sufficiently safe.” Some 84% said that Canadian festival and event organizers are putting in place appropriate measures to ensure participants’ safety.
For the two associations of festivals and events, which represent 45 gatherings across the country, this support from the population is very timely. A few weeks ago, FAME submitted a brief as part of the pre-budget consultations in Ottawa that recommended the government provide an additional $10 million to theCommunities at Risk: Security Infrastructure Program (SIP) and expand access to this program for festivals and events. The brief also suggests the creation of a program to grow the industry and calls for increases in the budgets of the two Canadian Heritage programs that benefit the industry. These budgets have remained unchanged for nearly 10 years.
FAME Executive Director Martin Roy, who called on the federal government to boost its support in an open letter in June, today invites the Ministers of Public Safety, Tourism, Canadian Heritage and Economic Development to act on the recommendations regarding festivals and events.
In May, a KPMG study estimated that a group of 17 Canadian events together generated $290.8 million in economic benefits (added value at market prices). This calculation was based on eligible spending (operations and tourism) of $396.4 million. The study also estimated that the 17 events had created or maintained the equivalent of 4,606 jobs (full-time equivalent) and generated $66.6 million in tax revenues ($49.3 million for the Québec government, $17.3 million for the Government of Canada).
More information about the survey
The web-based survey was conducted from August 3 to 6, 2018 among a sample of 1,527 Canadians aged 18 and over who can express themselves in French or in English. Using Statistics Canada data, the results were weighted by sex, age, province, mother tongue, education, and the presence of minor children in the household to make the sample representative of the entire population under study.
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