News & campaigns

See page 10 for more information about our conference in November, which focuses on music education Music education

In a keynote speech to an audience of teachers and senior leaders, Deborah Annetts highlighted the failings of the English Baccalaureate (EBacc), called on Government to reform accountability measures and spoke of the importance of wellbeing in holistic education. Despite the difficulties facing music education Annetts said that the ISM believes there’s a ‘golden opportunity’ for new thinking in the Department for Education. Suggestions included moving from Progress 8 to Progress 5 which would ‘help maintain the broad and balanced curriculum until the end of Key Stage 4.’ Read the full speech: ism.org/news/full-textof-deborah-annetts-delivering-excellence-inteaching-arts-in-schools-keynote-speech

Exam results and music entries

Following A-Level and GCSE exam results in August the ISM analysed data on exam entry levels and highlighted concerning trends in the number of students taking music exams. The statistics show GCSE music entries have fallen by a staggering 19% since 2011 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland combined. Meanwhile in Scotland, music entries to the National 5s have increased by 8% since 2020 and 10% since 2016. Statistics released by the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) revealed that the number of candidates for A-level music has dramatically fallen by 44% since 2011. In Scotland entries for music Highers have increased by 2.5% since 2020, and 0.7% since 2016 and Advanced Highers have increased by 13% since 2020 and 11% since 2016 according to figures released by the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA). This prompted the ISM to call for ‘urgent reform’ to the EBacc or for it to be scrapped altogether because it does not include creative subjects. ISM chief executive Deborah Annetts said of the results data, ‘The Government continues to preside over a dramatic decline in music education and is clinging onto its EBacc agenda, no matter the consequences. It’s time for urgent reform of the EBacc to include music and creative subjects, or it should be scrapped altogether.’ Despite the testing circumstances, the ISM thanks all music teachers and students for their work during the last 12 months. Read the ISM’s analysis on our website: ism.org/news/ism-concern-music-gcse-decline

Brexit

The ISM continues to campaign on Brexit-related issues on behalf of musicians. We have regular meetings with politicians and government officials to highlight the disastrous consequences of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) for musicians’ ability to tour in the European Union (EU). Recently the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) claimed that ‘20 EU countries offer visa and work permit free routes for UK musicians and performers’. The ISM believes that this announcement gives a misleading impression about the extent to which work in these countries will now be possible without a visa or work permit. We have also called on the Government to urgently clarify what kinds of work and what time periods are permitted in each of the 20 countries listed in the statement. ISM Chief Executive Deborah Annetts gave evidence to the House of Lords European Affairs Select Committee in September, setting out why it is critical that the Government and EU negotiate a bespoke Visa Waiver for the creative industries, which could allow musicians to tour in the EU without a visa for up to 90 days in a period of 180. Annetts challenged the Government to support UK musicians by: • making Eurostar a CITES-designated point of entry or exit, so that more musicians can use this route • financially compensating new musicians whose careers are now being limited by Brexit • clarifying rules around ATA Carnets and the transport and sale of merchandise while touring • correcting false information it has provided to musicians and ensuring all guidance it publishes on touring is clear and accurate You can watch the session by visiting: ism.org/news/ ism-give-evidence-to-the-european-affairscommittee-on-the-impact-of-brexit The ISM keeps an up-to-date ‘Visas and Work Permits in Europe Guide’ – which is a must-use resource for artists planning to tour in Europe: ism.org/ visa-guide-europe ‘Carry on Touring’ letter

Representatives of the ISM have joined more than 1,600 creatives and signed an open letter calling on the new Secretary of State for DCMS, Nadine Dorries MP, to help get the creative industries ‘back on tour’. The letter, coordinated by campaign group ‘Carry on Touring’ and supported by the ISM, calls on the Government to fix the post-Brexit barriers preventing UK creatives being able to tour in Europe – including additional costs and red tape. The letter calls for a ‘pan-European EU visa and work permit waiver’, which the ISM strongly supports. Responding, ISM Chief Executive Deborah Annetts said, ‘we hope that Nadine Dorries will put getting Britain back on tour at the very top of her “to do” list.’ Read Carry on Touring’s letter in full: ism.org/news/ ism-back-get-us-back-on-tour-open-letter

COVID-19

Since the Government moved to step 4 of the English ‘roadmap’ out of lockdown on 19 July the UK’s live events industry has begun to return after more than a year of restrictions. While some musicians have been able to return to work and are earning steadily once more, the results of the ISM’s Summer Survey showed that COVID-19 is still causing events to be cancelled regularly, and confidence in the music sector returning to pre-pandemic levels of activity before the end of 2021 is low. The survey results showed: • a third (33%) of musicians have had work cancelled by others or had to cancel work themselves since 19th July. • 90% of cancellations are COVID-19 related and will not be covered by the treasury-backed reinsurance scheme. • over half (54%) of those who responded have lost over £500 of potential earnings due to cancelled work since 19 July. • 62% have less work booked between July-

September 2021 than they did in the same period in 2019. Only 9% have more. • only 23% are completely or somewhat confident their engagements will have returned to prepandemic levels by the end of 2021.

Financial Support for hardest hit sectors

We thank the hundreds of ISM members who took the time to fill out our survey, giving us a comprehensive overview of how the pandemic continues to impact your work. You can read more about the results of our summer survey on our website, ism.org/news/isms-covid19-summer-survey-results-show-musicians-stillfeeling-the-financial-impact-of-the-pandemic

Reinsurance scheme

The ISM was pleased when the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak, announced a £750 million reinsurance scheme. It is something that the ISM and other creative organisations had been campaigning on for months. We feared events would be unable to return without insurance support because the financial risk of COVID-19 related cancellations was too great. These fears were proven accurate. The reinsurance scheme opened in September and will remain active for twelve months. However, we are concerned that it does not go far enough in providing cover for all types of COVID19 related cancellations. One example is, the reintroduction of social distancing requirements which could make events financially unviable or where outbreaks of COVID-19 among performers and production teams lead to performances being cancelled. This could be devastating, particularly for smaller organisations, ensembles and productions on a limited run. Learn more about scheme by visiting our website, ism.org/news/ism-responds-to-treasury-backedreinsurance-scheme

The furlough and self-employment income support scheme (SEISS) closed at the end of September. For the music industry, where recovery from COVID-19 is at an early stage, the closure is a great concern. Musicians who have been supported by the scheme but are not yet able to work and earn in a sustainable way are now at risk of financial hardship. ISM Chief Executive Deborah Annetts wrote to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak, to ask for targeted financial support for musicians who have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic and have not seen activity return to pre-pandemic levels. Read Deborah Annetts’ letter in full; ism.org/news/ ism-asks-chancellor-for-targeted-incomesupport-for-musicians Make sure to visit our COVID-19 hub for up-to-date advice across all four nations: ism.org/advice-centre/ coronavirus-listing

Streaming & copyright Diversity & inclusion

The ISM is committed to working with industry stakeholders to find an equitable, sustainable and transparent model for the licensing and distribution of royalties that is suitable for the streaming era. In October two important documents were released regarding streaming. The first was a response to June’s Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) Select Committee report into streaming which the Government called a ‘key moment’. Government committed to convening industry working groups but stopped short of concrete action. The second publication is the report from the Intellectual Property Office (IPO), ‘Music creators’ earnings in the digital era’. It aims to investigate the issues impacting upon the ability of creators to earn money since the development of music streaming. The IPO has analysed music creators’ earnings from music sales and royalties, which showed general decline. It provides further evidence that musicians are increasingly reliant on live performance for income. Although the research is comprehensive and thorough, the IPO did not have access to major label artist-royalty distribution data. This research should inform the thinking of Government and decision makers in the industry. The ISM continues to urge Government and the music industry to ensure that creators’ rights are protected and that they receive fair remuneration for their work. Read the ISM’s summary of the reports here: ism.org/news/important-streamingreports-launched ISM Chief Executive Deborah Annetts has written to the Minister for Women and Equalities, Liz Truss, to ask for protections against sexual harassment in the workplace for musicians following the government’s response to a consultation on sexual harassment in the workplace. While the response covers much ground such as length of time to bring claims to tribunal and a new duty on employers to prevent harassment, it provides very little protection for freelance workers. Protections instead remain primarily focused on employees. The ISM has called for wider protections for the music workforce and called for further details from Government. The ISM continues to work towards a safe and welcoming music industry for all, and will be calling on Government to introduce robust and far-reaching protections for the freelance music workforce, who often fall outside the scope of legislative protections at work. Read the ISM’s letter in full: ism.org/news/ismwrites-to-minister-for-women-and-equalitiesin-response-to-the-consultation-on-sexualharassment-in-the-workplace

Recommend ISM membership to a friend

With music professionals working in an increasingly uncertain world, ISM membership is more essential than ever. You can help to grow the ISM community by encouraging your friends and colleagues to join. We’ll also give you money off your next year’s membership fee every time someone you recommend joins us at the full or early career rate – £20 off if you are a full rate member, or £10 off if you are an early career rate member. If they join at the full rate, we’ll give them £10 off their membership fee too. Send the name and email address of the friend(s) you are recommending to membership@ism.org. Ask your friend to quote the code FULLREC if they are joining us at the full rate or EARLYREC if they are joining at the early career rate. Find out more at ism.org/recommend