Government to cap resale prices on gig tickets to a maximum of '30% above face value'

The UK government has announced plans to introduce a cap on ticket resale prices for live events, proposing a "30% above face value or less" limit.

Announced today (January 10), the move comes as part of UK Culture, Media and Sport Secretary Lisa Nandy's plans to end the "misery" endured by fans at the hands of ticket touts.

In a statement seen by The Guardian, Nandy said: "The chance to see your favourite musicians or sports team live is something all of us enjoy and everyone deserves a fair shot at getting tickets – but for too long fans have had to endure the misery of touts hoovering up tickets for resale at vastly inflated prices.”

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Prime Minister Keir Starmer tweeted: "I said I would stop fans from being ripped off by ticket touts. I am. Today, my government set out plans to cap resale prices and ban ticket hoarding so fans can see the acts they love at a fair price."

The decision is expected to be popular with music fans, with findings from a survey conducted in collaboration between YouGov and O2 revealing that 72% of concertgoers in the UK want more regulation on ticket resale prices.

Number 10 has published an open consultation on the gov.uk website, asking the public to share their views on the changes — including the figure respondents would like to see tickets capped by; ranging from "no uplift at all" to "between 20-30% above face value."

The consultation also asks for the public's opinion on limiting the amount of tickets a seller can buy, flexibility around venue capacity, limitations on how many tickets can be listed by one seller via platforms like Viagogo and StubHub, and if refunds should be issued to consumers who have unknowingly bought tickets from touts.

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The move has been welcomed by several high-profile artists, including Coldplay and Fatboy Slim, who said: “Fully behind this effort to make sure more people can enjoy incredible arts and music events across the country without being ripped off.”

In response to the announcement, a spokesperson for ticket resale platform Viagogo told The Guardian: “We will continue to constructively engage with the government and look forward to responding in full to the consultation and call for evidence on improving consumer protections in the ticketing market.”

Megan Townsend is Mixmag's Deputy Editor, follow her on Twitter