Back in October, several members of the Lord’s committee wrote a letter to the then-Brexit-Minister, David Frost, imploring him to listen to compelling evidence that an unnerving portion of Britain’s touring industry will be forced to gain work permits and visas in order to leave the UK. The Society of Musicians revealed that around 2/3 of musicians and businesses may be forced to leave the UK in order to continue working to a viable degree without help from the government. Today, it was discovered that another major step towards salvaging the careers of many working musicians, has been rejected by 26 of the 27 countries mentioned for the agreement. Only Spain chose to accept the terms.

This isn’t the first time that the innate lack of progress from the Tories has been highlighted either, Elton John led the charge in August after we were informed by the Department of Culture, Media & Sport that short term visas would be allowed in 19 EU countries. John said that the excitement of the announcement “quickly turned to disappointment” after the details confirmed the news was in fact too good to be true. Severe restrictions are still in place for almost all of them.

Read my thoughts on the recent announcement from @dcms pic.twitter.com/auWJ2eMI3v

— Elton John (@eltonofficial) August 5, 2021

Another letter, this time from the Incorporated Society of Musicians (ISM), a society representing the working rights of over 11,000 musicians, was sent to Ms Truss. This time asking her to change the whole approach for the Brexit negotiations before the COVID-19 restrictions are all removed and musicians can get back to doing what they do best, performing. Deborah Annetts, the society’s chief executive, warns, “The sector is now facing mountains of red tape, which is both costly and time-consuming,” adding, “The proposed solutions such as bilateral agreements with EU states have not materialised, apart from with Spain, and there are serious issues with cabotage, carnets and designated ports. All these issues are adversely impacting the UK music industry and the broader creative industries, which is worth £116bn per annum, the same as finance or construction.”

Lord Kinnoull, chair of the Lords Committee said: “The creative sector is important not just to the economies of the UK and other countries concerned but also the enjoyment and wellbeing of people. It is important that the government rebuild trust with the creative industries and provide the support they need to adjust to the post-Brexit era.”

So far, however, all of these pleas seem to have fallen on deaf ears.