Three-piece punk outfit Trigger Cut were refused entry to the UK due to confusing Brexit rule changes for touring bands. In a statement, the band’s guitarist Ralph Schaarschmidt said they were “humiliated” by the experience, which saw them turned away by UK’s Border Force in Calais because they couldn’t produce the necessary certificate.
Trigger Cut was due to play six shows across the UK on their tour, and had to cancel them all. “Months of planning, 1,750km of driving to Calais and back to Stuttgart, van hire costs, paid for expensive customs declarations, ferry ticket – all for nothing,” wrote Schaarschmidt. “We are sitting in a deep dark hole emotionally right now, this is a nightmare… I think I’ve never felt so degrad[ed], sad and bad as I do today.”
Trigger Cut: ‘Solid State’
The band says they had their passports confiscated by Border Force officials before they were handed over to the French police. The Guardian reports the band were planning on entering the UK under the “permitted paid engagement” (PPE) exemption, but officials demanded they produce a “certificate of sponsorship” – which is required from each venue the band would be playing.
“We would have needed a special certificate of sponsorship but no one knew before, not even the venues, promoters, or the German customs authority,” Trigger Cut explained in another Facebook post. “Brexit bureaucracy??? A post-Brexit nightmare.”
The band went on to say they wouldn’t attempt to tour the UK again, having been thwarted by COVID before. “Brexit finally killed the cultural interaction between all of us. It was a sad experience,” the band wrote.
Changes to the UK entry requirements have caused headaches for numerous artists recently. Frontman of The Charlatans, Tim Burgess, said the process was “unfathomable”.
In a statement, a UK government spokesperson said all applications are considered on their “individual merits in accordance with the immigration rules”. “All visa applications are carefully considered on their individual merits in accordance with the immigration rules,” the statement read. “The application process is designed to ensure that all visa decisions can be made using the most accurate information and is fair for all applicants.”
Further Reading
Thom Yorke Chats Brexit, ‘Anima’ And The State Of The World In Colbert Interview
Róisín Murphy On Brexit, New Music & Why There Won’t Be A Moloko Reunion Tour Anytime Soon
