Freelancers have again been kept waiting for action from the government. As with the recent Employment Rights Bill, the focus in the Budget has been on employees, with the promised reforms for the self-employed still to emerge. Over a third of performing arts freelancers reported earnings below the National Living Wage for 2022-23; today’s increase in the minimum wage will mean that without additional support, an even greater proportion of freelancers risk being left behind in poverty. And there are few signs so far of any new ideas on the arts in general. The government was elected on a mandate for change, and the need for action is urgent: for many of the most vulnerable freelancers, it will very soon be too late.
