The first quarter has been marked with record revenue of Dh14.2 billion
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The British government on Monday announced a nearly $2 billion (Dh7.35 billion) package to help theatres, museums, heritage sites and live music venues survive the coronavirus crisis, but faced accusations of acting too late.
The mix of grants and loans worth £1.57-billion (Dh7.2 billion)), was unveiled after increasingly desperate warnings that thousands of jobs and many cultural bodies were at risk.
A national shutdown was imposed in late March and is only now easing, as shops, pubs, hairdressers and museums have reopened in recent weeks.
But live performances remain banned because of the risks they pose of spreading Covid-19.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: "From iconic theatre and musicals, mesmerising exhibitions at our world-class galleries to gigs performed in local basement venues, the UK's cultural industry is the beating heart of this country.
"This money will help safeguard the sector for future generations, ensuring arts groups and venues across the UK can stay afloat and support their staff whilst their doors remain closed and curtains remain down."
The funds were warmly welcomed across the sector, which employs 700,000 people, according to government figures.
"This news is truly welcome at a time when so many theatres, orchestras, entertainment venues and other arts organisations face such a bleak future," said theatre legend Andrew Lloyd Webber.
"It is absolutely critical that Britain's cultural sector is restored to health as soon as possible."
Simon Rattle, director of the London Symphony Orchestra, said: "We hope it will be distributed as fast as possible... as so many institutions and individual artists have been staring into the abyss."
Some 1,500 acts including Ed Sheeran and The Rolling Stones last week made an impassioned call for help from ministers to protect the live music industry from collapse.
Their letter followed warnings from a string of institutions, including Shakespeare's Globe, the replica open-air theatre in London, that they risked closing forever without help.
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