Image Credit: UK Music
The commercial music sector is mounting an aggressive push to dismantle the severe economic barriers choking international live performance. Writing the foreword for a landmark new report by the European Movement United Kingdom titled Creating Culture Together, UK Music Chief Executive Tom Kiehl has officially called on political leaders to tear down post Brexit travel restrictions and rebuild essential creative bridges with the European Union.
Timed to mark the ten year anniversary of the Brexit referendum vote, the comprehensive report lays bare the devastating financial toll experienced by local talent over the last five years. The findings reveal that more than a quarter of British musicians have lost all of their employment opportunities within the European Union since 2021. Furthermore, average international touring earnings have plummeted by forty five percent, forcing nearly three fifths of surveyed musicians to report that executing a continental tour is no longer financially viable.
Kiehl emphasized that reducing these heavy administrative burdens is a top corporate priority for UK Music, an organization that actively champions an eight billion pound economic sector supporting two hundred twenty thousand jobs. While the political landscape altered significantly following the 2024 General Election with a Labour manifesto promise to address touring obstacles, and despite a 2025 Common Understanding pact to support cultural travel, real progress has stagnated.
To spark immediate economic growth and protect future talent pipelines, the trade body is lobbying for specific policy overhauls. These include establishing a dedicated touring visa to improve artist mobility, reforming complex cabotage transportation rules, and finding a permanent solution to expensive ATA carnets that burden crews. Additionally, the organization is pushing for the nation to rejoin Creative Europe to maximize soft power capabilities. UK Music is currently working alongside the Cultural Exchange Coalition, a group of one hundred fifty allied international organizations, to force political leaders to sweep away these barriers.
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