Tallinn Music Week raises awareness of Carry on Touring campaign

Bectu were pleased to support Tim Brennan in attending an international conference in Estonia last week. Tim is a founding member of Carry on Touring and a tireless campaigner for the plight of touring members who were completely hung out to dry by the Brexit Trade and Cooperation Agreement.

Tallinn Music Week is a major event which hosted 177 artists from 21 countries and 128 conference speakers from music and culture industries. The event serves as a great networking opportunity for professionals in the creative industries and allowed the Carry on Touring campaign to raise awareness of the problems that the EU Trade Deal has created for touring professionals in the UK.

The conference included talks from Ministers of governments and industry leaders from across the EU. The clear message was one of supporting creative professionals and the importance of culture in the post pandemic recovery. Although it is encouraging to hear this being prioritized within Europe, the restrictions implemented by the EU Trade Deal inhibits the growth of the UK creative industries at a time when the sector most needs support, with creative workers facing great difficulties returning to work.

You can read more about the conference here.

DCMS have recently made an announcement regarding visa and work permit arrangements in the EU. Bectu’s view is that this is merely a rehash of a previous announcement, one which was widely criticised and derided by the industry. You can read our full response here.

Whilst we have a new Secretary of State, it appears that we do not have new thinking. The obsession with misleading headlines at the expense of detail appears to be continuing and is simply not good enough.

Visa free access for short term tours is a step in the right direction, but there is still a long way to go to guarantee free movement for touring professionals. Tallin Music Week however provided a great opportunity to share the cause and the message of Carry on Touring and encouraged collaboration between European creatives.

Bectu will continue to support the Carry on Touring campaign and pressure the Government to provide a comprehensive touring framework that allows for free movement for all touring professionals.