Complete Music Update (08/23/21) Cooke, Chris

The U.K. government's latest data from its Events Research Program (ERP) indicates that, overall, the number of people who caught COVID-19 at any one live event participating in the program were in line with or below general infection rates at the time the events occurred. The latest statistics considered COVID cases recorded by the National Health Service Test And Trace system following each event. Both the Latitude and Tramlines festivals posted more than 1,000 infections each, while the Wimbledon Championships recorded 881 cases despite having a much bigger audience during the event. The music festivals were held after the lifting of most COVID restrictions in Britain, meaning that community infection rates were higher at the time those events transpired. The government concluded from these findings that "mass participation events can be conducted safely, but caution must still be taken around specific aspects of event participation." The government further recommended that "a cautious approach should be taken at unstructured events involving attendees being in close proximity for extended periods of time, when spectators are at high-density pinch points at venues, when traveling to and from events, and when mixing indoors before, during and after events."

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