Meet with your MP

All Members of Parliament have a duty of care for their constituents and generally will actively engage with constituents who wish to discuss personal problems the constituent might have as well as those with concerns over Government policy.

The Save Music campaign would like to encourage all musicians, all of those working in the music industry and anyone else concerned about the issues Brexit presents to the music industry to meet with their MP. The majority of the 650 MPs hold regular advice surgeries for their constituents, meaning that if you feel so inclined you can request a face-to-face meeting with your local MP and discuss the problems that musicians are facing as a result of Brexit.

Musicians who regularly work in the EU face innumerable issues as a result of Brexit including:

The possibility of double deductions of social security when working in the EU27 (i.e. having to pay both National Insurance as well as social security in the country that the musician is working within) due to A1 certificates ceasing to be valid post the transition period.

Uncertainty over freedom of movement, visas and the right to work in EU member states post-Brexit.

Increased bureaucracy if customs documents such as carnets become obligatory for UK musicians in order to transport instruments and equipment to and between EU27 countries.

Uncertainty over whether the UK will become its own CITES territory post-transition period, meaning that musicians will need Musical Instrument Certificates (MICs) to transport instruments containing CITES materials to the EU.

Even if musicians do not rely on work within the EU, the UK Government's recent decision not to implement the Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market (the EU copyright directive) following the UK’s departure from the EU will affect many UK-based musicians. The Government's decision means that musicians and other creatives still will not have adequate protection against copyright infringement.

Contact your local MP by phone, email or by post and request to meet with him or her at a surgery where you can explain the issues that musicians face as a result of Brexit.