An Oireachtas committee has been warned that cuts to the Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) in September may leave musicians and other live performers without any support this winter.
The Music & Entertainment Association of Ireland (MEAI) is "very concerned" that if a performer gets some employment in July or August, "they would be forced to sign off the PUP" and then be left without any support in winter.
Matt McGranaghan of the MEAI told the Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport and Media that activity in the music and live performance industry is seasonal by nature. "We have a lot of very worried people out there", Jackie Conboy, an MEAI co-founder, said, adding that some are selling their equipment to pay bills. "It's hard