Vinyl-store giants Banquet Records have announced they will resume sales to Ireland and mainland Europe, after halting sales to the areas for a month due to uncertainty over Brexit. The decision to stop sales was originally announced on the 16th December, in fear that there would be a no-deal Brexit agreement.
HAPPY NEU YEAR
today we resume shipping to Europe pic.twitter.com/FdlX2Z4uYk
— Banquet Records (@BanquetRecords) January 4, 2021
The record store spread the word that sales would continue through Twitter, tweeting ‘HAPPY NEU YEAR. Today we resume shipping to Europe.’ Alongside the tweet, the store released a graphic that read; “With clarity around orders to Europe, we can resume accepting orders to EU countries.” The announcement received a wave of support through social media, with many expressing their admiration, and support of the company’s ongoing efforts.
The fear over a no-deal Brexit was relieved on the 30th of December, when the British government voted to accept Boris Johnson’s latest trade deal with the EU. However, Brexit has still caused a myriad of issues for touring artists and their crews, prompting many notable music industry figures to speak out, and demand security for these workers.
While the government have not put any measures to protect touring employees yet, they assured NME in a statement that they “…are working closely with the arts and culture sector to prepare for the end of the transition period and recognise the importance of touring for UK musicians.”
