Minister of Economic Affairs Mika Lintilä (Cen) has stated that the government will reimburse event industry firms for cancellations caused by coronavirus restrictions.
"If an event is cancelled due to a decree by the state, it would be possible to recover part of the costs incurred," Lintilä said.
The coronavirus pandemic has had a devastating effect on the events industry in Finland, with overall turnover falling from about 2.35 billion euros in 2019 to net sales of just a few hundred million euros last year.
Lintilä said that the industry has been positive about the new plans for state support.
"A number of different organisations have indicated their willingness to be involved in the preparation, and the industry will also be consulted openly," he said, adding that the budgeting for the event guarantee will be "at least tens of millions of euros".
"The intention is that the event organisers will now dare to start initial preparations. This is a critical time, when performers for summer events are booked," he said, adding that the hosting of cultural events is very important for regions.
"We have well-established festivals that are of great importance to the regional economy and tourism. Quite often, events are built around culture, and the economic losses are multiples of the actual event," Lintilä said.