EU Flags Team

@jameswnaish. Thank you for raising the devastating impact of #Brexit on EU/UK touring in the #HoC today. We welcome @andyburnham's clear response to you: "I would like to see the return of visa-free access to Europe for British musicians and performers." (12 Oct, 2026, 17:17).

I see where you are getting confused. You’re conflating GDP with trade. GDP measures what’s produced in the UK. Trade measures what we buy and sell internationally. Exports count towards GDP; imports don’t, because they aren’t produced here. Your 8% figure is therefore simply wrong and misleading.

This recent table (Table 1) from #theofficeofnationalstatistics contradicts your bizarre claim that the EU accounts for just 8% of our total trade. The official figures show that the EU accounted for around 41% of UK exports in 2025 in the context of "total trade". ons.gov.uk/economy/nationala… (see Table 1)

This is simply wrong. Please show me a credible source for the 8% figure that you keep pushing. The latest House of Commons Library figures show that in 2025 the EU accounted for 41% of UK exports and 50% of UK imports. The EU is clearly a hugely significant trading partner for the UK, not 8% of our trade. commonslibrary.parliament.uk…

The UK did not pay the EU £50bn a year after Brexit. Before Brexit, the UK's average net contribution to the EU budget was around £7–7.5bn a year in 2016–19. The Brexit financial settlement is forecast at roughly £30–35bn spread over decades, not £50bn a year. "In 2025, the EU accounted for 41% of the UK’s exports (48% of goods exports and 37% of services exports). This share has fluctuated between 41% and 44% since 2015." commonslibrary.parliament.uk… Sovereignty doesn't pay the bills. Border control? How's that going?

#Brexit has caused the problem. The problem did not exist before the #BrexitChaos. Together with the Musicians’ Union, we are campaigning for a solution that enables UK musicians to regain the access they lost, which is costing the UK economy more than £100 million in lost economic value each year, according to commissioned DCMS research.

Not really surprising that a commissioned report on the impact of #Brexit on UK touring musicians’ ability to tour in the EU "is based on touring in the EU."

The findings point to £208 million less economic value being generated in the UK economy between 2022 and 2024 as a result of reduced touring opportunities and increased costs. Funny that!

The Government's own findings, published last month, contradict your common misconception about the ability of our gifted musicians to tour after #Brexit. I do recommend reading the report if you haven't done so already, particularly its findings on the significant economic benefits of touring. gov.uk/government/publicatio…

And I am sure you realise that the point of the hymn is not nationalistic at all; it evokes heaven as the shared spiritual home of humankind, beyond geographical borders, with “ways of gentleness and all her paths are peace.”

Of course, the music was composed by Gustav Holst, whose father was Swedish and who travelled widely in Europe, including Germany, Spain and Italy. Freedom for our creatives to travel and work across Europe is precisely what we campaign for.

In my head is the optimism about striving for a better collaborative society that is reflected in the last lines of Jerusalem, sung at the #Lastnightoftheproms: I will not cease from Mental Fight, Nor shall my sword sleep in my hand, Till we have built Jerusalem In England's green and pleasant Land.

Better latte than never. ☕🇪🇺

It was concertgoers who waved the EU flag in support of struggling UK musicians who have been negatively impacted by #Brexit.

Thank you for your constructive point, Sara. We do this to support struggling musicians who are still being negatively impacted by #Brexit. Nobody thought through the unintended consequences of reintroducing borders for our creative communities. We’re asking the Government to honour its manifesto commitment and help musicians and creatives overcome the crippling bureaucracy and costs now facing UK touring musicians after leaving a collaborative union.

We are a pro-British group of Prommers who want more opportunities for our struggling UK musicians, whose ability to tour has been badly affected by #Brexit. We’re calling for better solutions so our talented creatives can tour across the continent. 🇬🇧🇪🇺🎶

Nope! It celebrates a two-month classical music season and thanks all the talented musicians who have performed for us, especially the touring musicians who have faced the high costs and bureaucracy that Brexit created. 🇪🇺🎶

The UK was a founding member of the Council of Europe in 1949, and we’re still a member today. Its blue flag with 12 gold stars has been its flag since 1955. We wave it to highlight the bureaucracy our talented UK musicians now face when touring in Europe as a result of Brexit. 🇪🇺🎶

What has the EU got to do with a quintessentially British tradition? Well, more than 50 European composers, around 10 EU orchestras and Prommers from across Europe might have something to do with it. 🇪🇺🎶

The @telegraph decided not to publish our response to @timothy_stanley 13 September piece (aol.com/articles/people-vote…), in which he called those organising the EU flags at the #lastnightoftheproms “sad sack Remainers”. We believe in open dialogue and free speech, so we’ve published our response here...