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Dateline: 6th March, 2008

Festivals Under Threat From New Rules

The Edinburgh Fringe and other arts festivals are under threat from new rules on visitors to the UK, it has emerged. According to a statment from major Edinburgh Fringe venue C, these changes "would seriously threaten the future of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and other arts festivals, making it very difficult and expensive for companies, performers and audiences from outside Europe to attend the Festival."

The statement points out that the new measures, which affect all visitors without EU/EEA passports, may include:

• the end of work permit free status for the Edinburgh Fringe and other festivals;
• the end of group visas for theatre companies travelling together;
• performers and other visitors having to provide evidence of financial stability before being allowed to enter the UK;
• making venues and Festivals responsible for ensuring visiting performers leave the UK on time after their visit, and penalising them if performers do not comply with the terms of their visa;
• imposing a monitoring and reporting role on venues and Festivals, including the monitoring of visiting performers' accommodation and checks to ensure they do not engage in criminal or undesirable activity whilst in the UK;
• imposing costs on venues and Festivals becoming 'sponsors' to visitors, resulting in sponsorship costs possibly needing to be be passed to performing companies, or smaller venues ceasing to programme shows from outside Europe;
• more complicated application procedures for visas, including a requirement for every person in a performing company to attend the UK embassy/consulate in their home country in person to obtain a visa. In some countries without modern transport links, this could prevent people from being able to apply.

"We are concerned that these changes may have the effect of reducing the diversity of the Edinburgh Fringe and turning it from a genuinely global into a predominantly European event, shrinking its size and having a negative effect on the local economy," said Louise Rogers, C venues general manager." The Fringe Office has been attending meetings with the UK Home Office to try and explain these dangers to them, and to help them understand how damaging this would be for the future of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and all other international arts events.

"We understand that in the current climate the Government has identified a policy need to strengthen UK borders, but are concerned that these changes are being brought in too quickly, without full thought to some of the consequences. The Permit Free Festival system has worked well for Edinburgh and other Festivals for many years, while other countries have systems of free permits for festivals. The UK, by opting for a paid for system which is complicated to administer and places an additional burden on Festivals and venues, could lose out as an arts and tourist destination as a result."

The period given by the government for consultation ends on 10th March. The consultation questionnaire is available on the Borders and Immigration Agency website.

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©Peter Lathan 2008