Yes, very bad, totally, but they’re not our regulations

Of course, of course, deepest sympathy to the musicians, actors and the like caught up in this nonsense:

As Sir Keir Starmer talks of a reset with the EU and Rachel Reeves strives for growth, now is surely the time to free up musicians and artists from the massive bureaucracy and costs of performing in Europe.

Currently, if an opera house or orchestra in Paris, Vienna, Berlin or Milan needs to book a singer or soloist, especially at short notice, they are avoiding the UK because of the form-filling and costs. This is depriving many singers and players of much-needed income — and so denying the Treasury too.

Quite so, quite so:

Then there is the issue of cabotage — not a vegetable, sadly, but the crazy reciprocal rules governing the movement of trucks carrying the instruments and staging that groups and orchestras need in order to tour. On arrival in Europe, everything must be unloaded from the UK lorry and loaded on to a European one instead and then, every two venues, unloaded again and a new vehicle employed.

This, clearly, makes touring so expensive that very few can even consider it — yet touring only becomes viable when there are enough venues to spread the costs.

We agree, total idiocy.

But here’s the thing. It’s not our total idiocy. It’s their total idiocy.

These are not rules imposed by Britain. These are rules imposed by the European Union. Sure, sure, if we were in the EU then these rules would not be imposed upon Britons touring in Europe. But if we were inside the EU then these - these exact same rules - would be imposed upon everyone from outside the EU who wished to tour Britain. This might not be to our advantage.

There is also that broader point. Given that we all agree these rules are insane then why so much effort being expended on rejoining a bureaucracy that imposes such insane rules? If these rules are Bad, M’Kay, then why do we want them imposed here?

Tim Worstall