The Labour leader is promising to put fans back at the heart of
music, cultural and sporting events as he vows to clamp down on
ticket touting.
Labour will tackle ticket touting by capping resale prices and
giving the Competition and Markets Authority the powers it needs
to regulate resale platforms.
Keir Starmer’s ambition to put fans back at the heart of music,
cultural and sporting events where they belong comes as he
announced Labour’s Sector Plan for the Creative Industries. This
includes a package of measures to drive investment, increase
opportunities, and unleash Britain’s creative potential.
Reselling tickets for profit has already been banned in many
countries, but under the Tories, fans have been let
down.
Too often, genuine fans are missing out on getting tickets only
to see those same tickets on secondary ticketing websites at far
higher prices, making them unaffordable and putting them out of
reach.
Labour says this “not only rips off hard working Brits wanting to
enjoy their favourite band or actor, but it damages the
relationship between venue, artist and fan.”
Many reselling websites are dominated by large-scale touts,
rather than just those who can no longer attend an event. Touts
use different illegal and unethical means, including false IDs,
bots, and automated systems to skip online queues and hoover up
large numbers of tickets.
Labour’s plan to clamp down on ticket touts will:
- Strengthen consumer rights legislation on this issue to
restrict the resale of tickets at more than a small, set
percentage over the price the original purchaser paid for it
(including fees).
- Limit the number of tickets individual resellers can list to
the number of tickets that individuals can legitimately buy via
the original platform.
- Make platforms accountable for the accuracy of information
about tickets they list for sale and ensure that the Competition
and Markets Authority has the powers that it needs to take swift,
decisive action against platforms and touts, to protect
consumers.
, Leader of the Labour Party,
said:
“Access to music, art and theatre for hard working Brits can’t be
at the mercy of ruthless ticket touts driving up prices.
“Hours spent refreshing ticket resale websites only to pay
through the nose to see an artist you love, is frustrating and
unfair.
“Labour will cap resale prices and ban ticket hoarding. Culture
should be for fans, not excessive profits.”
Ends
Notes
Endorsing Labour’s ticket touts announcement, Will Young
said:
“I support Labour’s plan to clamp down on ticket touting.
“This will ensure that more people can get to events for the
correct and fair price and that people passionate about the arts
win rather than those looking to misuse the system for financial
gain. Putting fans back at the heart of music.”
