Ditch the ‘mood music’ at the UK-EU reset, Starmer, and put musicians top of the bill

The following article is a comment piece from campaign group Thank EU For The Music, about Starmer’s meeting this week

Keir Starmer and Ursula von der Leyen are meeting in Brussels on Wednesday 2 October for a much-needed UK-EU reset. But will the Labour Party honour a key manifesto pledge to reduce red tape for touring musicians?

Thank EU For The Music: Starmer needs to act

Three months after taking office, the UK prime minister will meet with Ursula von der Leyen to discuss improving UK-EU relationships. Senior EU diplomats are frustrated by the lack of clear objectives for the relationship, but sources suggest reducing paperwork for touring musicians may be a talking point.

It can’t come too soon. Resolving the issue of UK touring in Europe was in the Labour manifesto. In an LBC radio interview conducted shortly before the election, Keir Starmer said:

It’s been very tough, particularly for musicians. So, anything we can do to ease that, the better.

Recent research by the Musicians’ Union and the Independent Society of Musicians reveals that over half of UK musicians have ceased touring in the EU due to post-Brexit red tape and costs. David Martin, chief executive of the Featured Artists Coalition, revealed that the number of shows performed by UK artists in Europe fell by 74% between 2019 and 2022.

Thank EU for the Music is a pro-European group that campaigns for a better deal for touring musicians impacted by Brexit. Its members formed part of the National Rejoin March last Saturday 28 September dressed as elephants:

“Brexit has been the elephant in the room for years,” group spokesperson Kate Hobbs says:

UK Musicians are struggling to tour in the EU, and vice versa. As Keir Starmer meets with Ursula von der Leyen this week to ‘reset’ post-Brexit relationships, we urge him to prioritise visa-free touring and freedom of movement for musicians. It’s a win-win for both the UK and the EU.

Placards with messages such as “Musicians Need to be ‘Herd'” were held aloft by activists in elephant costumes at last Saturday’s ‘National Rejoin March’ in London, underscoring the call to restore freedom of movement for artists:

Deal with the elephant in the Brexit room

Since 2016, Thank EU for the Music has been raising awareness about the devastating consequences of Brexit on the music industry. Their efforts include distributing thousands of EU flags at the Last Night of the Proms and 50,000 flags at the Eurovision Song Contest in Liverpool in 2022.

Tom Kiehl, chief executive of the UK Music industry body, wants Sir Keir Starmer to make UK touring musicians a key priority:

Labour made a pre-election commitment to deal with a problem that is threatening the talent pipeline on which the music industry relies. We need the government to continue to work with our EU neighbours to try to find a swift solution.

Mujtaba Rahman of the Eurasia Group political risk consultancy is more direct:

Starmer has to use the meeting to provide a greater, concrete sense of what the government actually wants to do. It can’t be another ‘mood music’ meeting — that won’t land well in Brussels.

Musicians hope Wednesday’s reset meeting isn’t just a case of “mood music” being on repeat and that Keir Starmer and Ursula von der Leyen cut straight to the grand finale to improve conditions for the troubled creative touring industry.

Featured image via the Canary and additional images via Thank EU For The Music