Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the oral contribution of the Minister for Digital and Culture of 19 January 2021, Official report, col 774-789, on what dates the EU rejected the UK’s offer during the negotiations to include musicians on the list of independent professions for short-term business visitors.

During the negotiations, this Government proposed that musicians and technical staff be added to the list of permitted activities for short-term business visitors in the entry and temporary stay chapter of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement. This would allow them to travel and perform in the EU more easily, without needing work-permits.

As with legal text shared in confidence, publishing correspondence and details exchanged between parties related to the development of legal text for trade agreements would not be appropriate.

A DCMS Working Group with key cultural sector representatives and other key government departments has been established to tackle the range of specific issues with a view to assisting the sector as far as possible to confidently work in the EU.