Brexit has had a disastrous impact on musicians, with a significant fall in the number of musicians touring the EU and many not having any work at all, Parliament has been told.
During a UK-EU reset evidence session in Parliament yesterday, CEO of the Independent Society of Musicians Deborah Annetts, laid out in stark terms the disastrous impact Brexit has had on the British music industry.
She told Parliament: “So in terms of the musicians, the situation has got far worse. You may recall that in 2019, the EU was our largest market, in relation to touring musicians.
“That has fallen. In terms of level of earnings, they have dropped significantly. Musicians have given up touring, about 30% have had no work at all since Brexit came into full force with the TCA.
“Musicians have lost an average between £500-£450,000 as a result of not being able to tour.”
According to a survey by the Independent Society of Musicians in 2023, almost half of UK musicians and workers in the music industry have had less work in the EU since Brexit than before it, and more than a quarter have had no EU work at all.
The most frequently cited extra expense since Brexit was for visas and work permits.
Basit Mahmood is editor of Left Foot Forward
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