The Stage

Licence to fill

Published Tuesday 21 June 2005 at 11:20

I read with interest your article about discussions between Bectu and the DTI with regard to agency licensing (News, June 9, page 3).

Licensing would achieve little more than an increase in the form filling, bureaucracy and overheads for 99.9% of the industry’s reputable agents. It would have no effect whatsoever on the minority of unscrupulous cowboys who prey on the desperate and naive.

Any agency charging an up-front fee, not based on work found for clients, is already in breach of the conduct of employment agencies regulations, revised last year. The DTI already has the necessary power to stop the activities of those in breach of the existing regulations.

Gordon Brown recently pledged to bring an end to the Kafkaesque bureaucracy that currently suffocates every small business in this country. Agency licensing would leave small agencies like my own with less time to find work for our clients. The additional costs and administration of licensing would inevitably be added to the commission charged to artists.

Any individual seeking a reputable agent need look no further than the website of the Agents’ Association or seek advice from Equity and Bectu, and simply remember to never pay an up-front fee to any agency.

Arnold Harrison

Naesby Road

Stockport

Cheshire