05.06.2026: Peers from across the political divide joined forces in a House of Lords’ debate to demand Government action against ticket touts that rip off music fans by reselling tickets at exorbitant prices. 

One peer criticised the Government’s failure to extend proposed legislation to cover sporting events to music concerts and festivals as well as “illogical”.

The Government made a manifesto commitment to tackle ticket touts. However, in the King’s Speech planned legislation was downgraded to just a “draft Bill” – meaning any crackdown is unlikely to come into force soon.

In a House of Lords’ debate on the Government’s Sporting Events Bill on Wednesday June 3, peers voiced their concern about the issue and called for action.

Labour peer Lord Bassam of Brighton namechecked UK Music Chief Executive Tom Kiehl (pictured) for the suggestion that the Sporting Events Bill could be extended to cover music venues as well as sporting events.

Lord Bassam said: “It does seem a bit odd taking measures to counter ticket touts at football and sporting events while leaving music events entirely unprotected. It is somewhat illogical.

“Why use a Bill to consult on these provisions for other issues such as music when provisions have already been published in an actual piece of legislation? Perhaps the Minister can explain this. On the face of it, the ticket touting offence seems pretty all-embracing, properly capturing ticket platforms and marketplaces. It also applies to businesses that operate from outside the UK but where the offence relates to people in the UK. These conditions seem entirely replicable to musical events.”

Ulster Unionist Party Peer Lord Rogan said: “I hope that this initiative is swiftly followed by similarly robust provisions to clamp down on ticket touting for music and other live events, as Ministers have promised and the music industry has long called for.”

Highlighting a “significant omission” in the Sporting Bill, Labour peer Baroness Gill said:  “Although the Bill beautifully safeguards international tournaments, it is a great pity that its protections do not extend to our everyday domestic sporting fixtures or world-renowned live music events.

“A fan being ripped off for a cup final or a grass-roots local derby deserves the same statutory shield as an executive sitting watching a Euro 2028 match. Similarly, a young music lover trying to buy a ticket to see their favourite band at a local arena faces the exact same automated harvest bots and predatory pricing platforms. Live music and domestic sport are the lifeblood of British culture; leaving them exposed feels like a missed opportunity to create a truly comprehensive consumer protection standard.”

Conservative peer Lord Hayward said: “I support the questions raised by the noble Lord, Lord Bassam, and others as to why music events are not covered on the same basis as sporting ones; it would make sense, and if it is not done now, I envisage that we will be here debating a piece of legislation that will drag those areas into the same piece of regulation in one form or another.”