Member

As the Bill stands, there is a real possibility that, depending on how each individual local authority chooses to apply the requirements for a register, young performers may miss out on opportunities to perform simply because their local authority has chosen rigid application of requirements for the register. That does not meet the real working conditions of the creative industry. Casting directors will simply not be able to cast young performers from those local authorities that require unavailable information much too far in advance for industry working practices—or the local authority will not apply educational conditions consistently, so young performers will yo-yo on and off the register with multiple engagements over a short period of time. It would be far simpler for young performers to be dealt with outside the register, which is why I have tabled these amendments specifically to exclude child performers from the requirements of the not in school register; I dearly hope that the Minister will accept them.