A coalition of more than 40 British musicians — including Radiohead, Dua Lipa, and Coldplay — has called on Prime Minister Keir Starmer to fulfil his pledge to address “extortionate and pernicious” resale websites that exploit fans by reselling concert tickets at vastly inflated prices.
In a joint statement, artists such as Sam Fender, PJ Harvey, The Cure’s Robert Smith, Iron Maiden, New Order, and Nick Cave urged the government to take decisive action against “secondary ticketing” platforms, including Viagogo and StubHub.
“For too long certain resale platforms have allowed touts to bulk-buy and then resell tickets at inflated prices, forcing fans to either pay above the odds or miss out entirely,” the statement read. “This erodes trust in the live events sector and undermines the efforts of artists and organisers to make shows accessible and affordable.”
The signatories are calling for a firm cap on resale prices to “help fix elements of the extortionate and pernicious secondary ticketing market that serve the interests of touts, whose exploitative practices are preventing genuine fans from accessing the music, theatre, and sports they love.”
Alongside the artists, organisations such as UK Music, FanFair Alliance, and the Football Supporters’ Association have also signed the letter. Created in partnership with consumer group Which?, the statement highlights that ending for-profit resale would make it “easier for fans to spot illegal behaviour” and discourage them from turning to unregulated websites for tickets.
“Today’s joint statement makes clear that artists, fan organisations, and consumers reject the broken ticketing market that has allowed touts to thrive for too long,” said Lisa Webb, Which?’s consumer law expert, in a statement accompanying the letter. “The Prime Minister pledged to protect fans, and a price cap on resold tickets will be a critical step towards fixing this industry. However, he must commit to this legislation by including it in the next King’s Speech. Further reforms are also needed to ensure sellers actually own the tickets they advertise before listing them, that resale platforms verify the identities of sellers and provide accurate ticket information, and that these new rules are properly enforced.”
Starmer’s Labour government promised during the last general election to cap ticket resale prices but has yet to take concrete action. In January, the government launched a consultation on setting a cap that would limit resale price increases to between zero and 30 per cent of the original face value.
A government spokesperson told the BBC, “This government is fully committed to clamping down on touts and is going further to put fans back at the heart of live events. We have carefully considered evidence provided in response to our consultation earlier this year and will set out our plans shortly.”
Which also published findings from a consumer study conducted between August and September, investigating traders reselling tickets for major U.K. events on StubHub and Viagogo. The research revealed that many resale prices were excessively inflated. For example, Oasis tickets for the band’s Wembley Stadium shows were listed for £3,498.85 on StubHub and £4,442 on Viagogo. Similarly, a ticket for the All Points East festival in London’s Victoria Park, headlined by Raye, was found listed for an astonishing £114,666 on Viagogo.