A leaked letter shows the Carnival chair has requested “urgent funding” from the Culture Secretary
Notting Hill Carnival, which has happened annually since 1966, is one of the world’s biggest street parties, attracting over two million attendees every year. But the future of Carnival is up in the air as its organisers have stated it needs “urgent funding” from the government. In a letter leaked to the BBC, Carnival chair Ian Comfort requested money from Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy, which he said was “essential to safeguarding the future and public safety of this iconic event”.
An independent safety review of the festival, commissioned by the organisers and paid for by the Greater London Authority (GLA), Kensington and Chelsea Council and Westminster Council at a cost of £100,000, identified “critical public safety concerns”. There were about 7000 officers on duty for last year’s event and the Met Police’s Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist has previously voiced concerns about a “mass casualty event” due to crowd density. Speaking at City Hall today, Sadiq Khan echoed those sentiments, saying “I’ve seen images of some of the crowds at some parts of the day and watching that made me frightened”.
Mr Comfort also referenced another review in his letter, which highlighted the increased strain placed on the Met Police during large-scale events, saying that “limited resourcing has restricted the police service’s ability to respond to growing operational pressures”, that increased investment in stewarding and crowd management was “now essential to allow the police to focus on their primary role of crime prevention and public protection”, and that not securing additional funding “risks compromising public safety and jeopardising the future of the carnival”.
He didn’t provide a specific figure in his funding request and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport has told the BBC it would “respond to the letter in due course”.
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