Asked by
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether an offer was made by the
European Union to the United Kingdom for visa-free touring for
musicians in European Union member states; and if so, why any
such offer was declined.
(CB) [V]
My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on
the Order Paper; in so doing, I declare my interests as listed in
the register.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for
Digital, Culture, Media and Sport () (Con)
My Lords, the Government recognise the importance of the UK’s
thriving cultural industries and pushed for ambitious
arrangements for performers and artists to be able to work across
Europe after the end of freedom of movement. During the
negotiation, the EU tabled text regarding the paid activities
that can be conducted without a visa. These proposals would not
have addressed our sector’s concerns; they were non-binding, did
not include touring or technical staff and did not address work
permits. Our proposals, which the EU has admitted to rejecting,
were based on the views of the music industry and would have
allowed musicians to travel and perform in the UK and the EU more
easily, without needing work permits.
(CB) [V]
I thank the Minister for that reply. I have an email from Guy
Verhofstadt which rather puts the boot on the other foot. It
details how the UK put its obsession with mobility before a
90-day reciprocal offer. The noble Lord, , has made it clear
that there will be no imminent revisiting of this situation.
Given this, can the noble Baroness offer some glimmer of hope to
musicians, who generate £5.8 billion for the UK economy? Will
find financial assistance? Even if he does, how will
that ameliorate the loss of cultural exchange, which is so vital
to the arts?
(Con)
The noble Lord is right to recognise the incredible contribution
of our cultural sectors, including musicians and the connected
creative sectors. The Secretary of State is working very hard; he
has a round table with sector institutions tomorrow to understand
their concerns in detail. We are working with the sector to try
to distil and simplify the rules which will apply, but we are
committed to ensuring it has the right support at the right time
to continue to thrive once we emerge from the pandemic.
(Lab) [V]
My Lords, did the Government make any assessment of the impact
the free trade agreement would have on musicians touring the
European Union? If they bothered to make such an assessment, will
they publish the details right away?
(Con)
I am slightly taken aback at the noble Lord’s tone; the
Government have been incredibly committed to this area.
Obviously, there were multiple complex issues that needed to be
considered in these negotiations, including the commitments to
take back control of our borders and to make sure that our
creative industries continue to flourish. We remain entirely
committed to both.
(LD)
[V]
My Lords, touring musicians and creative artists are deeply angry
at this negotiating failure. Is not the root of the problem
refusal by the Home Office to extend permitted paid engagement
here to 90 days for EU artists, meaning as a result that work
permits will now be required in many member states for our
artists? Will the Government urgently rethink this and
renegotiate on the instrument and equipment carnet and on
trucking issues?
(Con)
There were a number of drawbacks to the EU proposals, which did
not meet the requirements of our sectors, as I mentioned; they
covered only ad hoc performances, they were non-binding and did
not address technical staff or work permits. Our door absolutely
remains open to reviewing these points, but in the meantime we
will do everything we can to support our sectors.
(Con) [V]
My Lords, I declare my interest as chairman of the Royal College
of Music. Will my noble friend acknowledge that the current
impasse will have a profoundly damaging impact on UK students,
who need to travel to progress their careers but, as they will
not earn large fees at that stage of their lives, will find
themselves priced out of the market because of expensive and
complex visa requirements? As there seems to be political will on
both sides to ensure that musicians can continue to work freely
in Europe, do we not owe it to students, above all else, to get
back to the negotiating table to sort this out?
(Con)
My noble friend raises a very important point. There are two
different issues here: on going back to the negotiating table, as
I said to the noble Lord, , our door
is absolutely open but, in the short term, understanding the
picture for students and how we can support them is part of our
work—if there are specifics my noble friend would like to share
with me, I will endeavour to make sure that fellow Ministers are
briefed on them.
(CB) [V]
It has been disheartening to hear the UK and the EU blaming each
other for the failure to reach agreement on this. Does the
Minister agree that a more constructive approach would focus on
how a deal could be fashioned on the basis of the positive ideas
that each side has put forward? How soon might the Government
initiate such a process and, rather than just having an open
door, knock on the door of the EU to pursue it?
(Con)
I am sure the noble Lord is right that mutual blame probably does
not get us much further forward. However, as I said, in the
meantime we are doing everything we can to try to simplify the
procedures now in place and to understand the needs of the sector
so it can continue to flourish and thrive.
(Lab) [V]
My Lords, the Minister’s opening response was very carefully
crafted but, reading between the lines, it seems the creative
industries have lost out in an unseemly internal government
squabble. If the door is still open for discussion, what are the
Government doing to develop an agreed position which will also
deliver the backing of the Home Office and Border Force?
(Con)
The Government had an agreed position, which was to extend the
list of permitted activities for short-term business visitors.
The EU rejected that.
(LD)
[V]
My Lords, we understand that there are different views as to what
actually happened but given that musicians from the continent
have been performing in Britain for the past 250 years, and that
British musicians now perform on the continent on a regular
basis, this is a win-win situation. Cannot the Government
therefore take an initiative to reopen negotiations on this
topic, which would clearly be of benefit to both sides to succeed
in? I declare an interest as a trustee of the VOCES8 Foundation,
which provides not only performance but musical education in
France, Germany, Italy and Belgium.
(Con)
I am afraid that I will have to disappoint the noble Lord, as I
have done on previous questions on this point. We secured a deal
that delivers on the result of the referendum. The agreement is
not going to be renegotiated. Our job now is to implement it as
well as possible.
[V]
My Lords, senior musicians I spoke to this weekend described
experiences of agonising paperwork and fees, and sense that
foreign promoters are already hesitant to offer engagements to UK
groups. How do the Government intend to ensure that the increased
costs associated with obtaining permits and administrating these
tours will not, as a result, exclude all but the most privileged?
(Con)
We are absolutely determined to make sure that we protect all
parts of the cultural and creative ecosystem. As I have said, the
Secretary of State is meeting organisations tomorrow and we
continue to work closely to understand their needs, so that as
soon as touring can recommence after the pandemic we do so with
confidence.
(Con)
My Lords, touring is not peripheral to the arts but central and
vital—the basis of a major export industry and a vital showcase
for the United Kingdom. If we could just lay aside the
unfortunate blame game of recent days, can this please be sorted
out as a matter of the utmost urgency?
(Con)
I can say only to my noble friend that I hope that the Secretary
of State’s round table tomorrow constitutes utmost urgency.
(CB)
My Lords, at the very least, we urgently need a 90-day
supplementary agreement, which will cover most touring. Will the
Government acknowledge that mode 4 should not be explored to
resolve this issue? It is clear now that mode 4 is not going to
work. There is no precedent in any other agreement for mode 4 to
allow creative work and touring. A supplementary agreement should
be sought.
(Con)
I can say only to the noble Earl that we tried hard in these
negotiations to make the case based on the evidence given to us
by the sectors that we represent, and the EU rejected those
suggestions.