EU-UK Cultural Exchange Arrangements

Baroness Caine of Kentish Town Excerpts

Thursday 4th June 2026 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Baroness Caine of Kentish Town]

To ask His Majesty’s Government what progress they have made in securing better cultural exchange arrangements between the creative sectors of the EU and the UK.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Culture, Media and Sport (Baroness Twycross) (Lab)]

The Government recognise the importance of strong cultural exchange between the UK and the EU. On 24 March, the Minister for Creative Industries co-led the first UK-European Commission high-level meeting on culture, with Commissioner Glenn Micallef, building on commitments made at the inaugural UK-EU summit in May 2025 to deepen cultural exchange. We continue to work closely with European partners and industry, including through engagement with the Cultural Exchange Coalition, to support our creative sectors.

[Baroness Caine of Kentish Town (Lab)]

I thank my noble friend the Minister for her reply. The Brexit deal delivered complex, costly arrangements for touring artists, now made even worse by the recent introduction of digital passports, or carnets, for equipment. In a recent UK Music creators survey, 43% of those who previously toured the EU stated that it is no longer viable for them to do so—a hit to our growing economy and our soft power, repeated across other art forms. Can my noble friend reassure the House that, in keeping with the Government’s manifesto commitment to seek to resolve this issue, it remains a top priority in the current UK-EU reset negotiations, and update the House on what considerations Ministers are giving to stepping up now to help subsidise the cost of the equipment carnets, until a permanent solution is found?

[Baroness Twycross (Lab)]

As my noble friend Lord Hanson made clear, the creative industries are a key sector for this Government. Supporting touring artists is a government manifesto commitment and we deeply value and promote the importance of cultural exchange across Europe. We recognise, as I think my noble friend does, that this is a highly complex issue and we continue to work with our European partners to make progress on practical, mutually beneficial solutions. I can assure my noble friend that the department remains committed, as do the Government more widely, to securing improvements for our musicians and artists, and their support staff, working closely with the creative and cultural sectors as we do so.