“With time running out for the UK to reach a withdrawal agreement with the EU, organizations representing musicians and orchestras in Britain have been voicing their concerns over freedom of movement and the government’s post-Brexit immigration policy,” writes Peter Somerford in last Friday’s (9/21) Strad (U.K.). “In July a report by the House of Lords’ European Union Home Affairs Sub-Committee argued that ‘the cultural sector urgently needs more clarity on free movement post-Brexit.’ A few days later, the Incorporated Society of Musicians (ISM) published a report, based on a survey of 1,600 musicians and their work travel patterns, that calls for freedom of movement to be protected post-Brexit. The Musicians’ Union called for a special touring visa for musicians post-Brexit. The UK government position, as set out in the white paper of 12 July, confirms that although freedom of movement will end when the UK leaves the EU, the government will seek reciprocal mobility arrangements with the EU,… Despite this, in the absence of any UK–EU agreement and with the future UK immigration system still unclear, musicians and the organizations representing them are understandably concerned by the lack of clarity.”
Posted September 28, 2018
