Paying face value for some tickets can be a stretch for many hard-working people, so for ruthless touts to set prices at two, three, and even up to as much as 10 times the listed price for a gig is despicable.
Today we are putting fans back at the heart of live music and events.
The measures we are proposing give much-needed regulation to end the scourge of over-inflated prices so gig-goers no longer miss out.
We will look at making it illegal for tickets to be resold at more than the original price, or introduce a percentage cap above the original price. We also want to increase the accountability of secondary ticketing platforms.
And, crucially, we want improved safeguards at the outset to ensure true fans have adequate access to buy tickets when they’re released.
The Daily Record has been campaigning on ticket prices for years and, as far back as 2019, called for a resale cap of 10 per cent above face-value prices. I want to thank the paper and assure people that, as the Prime Minister promised before last summer’s election, we will deliver.
The UK Government takes our arts and entertainment sector seriously. We’re putting more money in people’s pockets to raise living standards across the UK. Keeping prices down is a key part of that.
I’m calling on everyone affected by this issue in Scotland – fans, artists, promoters and venues – to respond to our consultation. It’s the only way we’ll bring true transparency to the events sector, end the exploitation of fans, promote fairness in the ticketing industry and keep prices down.
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