Ticket touts have never been popular. Yet this unpopularity is no warrant for Labour to deprive ticket holders of their right to resell them at a higher price, with the dire consequences for economic efficiency which will result. The exploitation ticket touts are alleged to put consumers through is predicated on the entirely false notion that everyone should have a fair chance to get tickets to concerts. No. Theatres, musicians and performers have a right to charge whatever they like for their tickets, and that includes granting said right to third parties, i.e. the ticket touts, via their tickets’ terms and conditions. Fairness be damned. 

The government plans to ban the secondary sale of tickets above their face value. The central reason for doing this is such sales are said to be ‘exploitative’. Exploitation is defined as taking unfair advantage of someone for personal gain. Michael Sandel in his book What Money Can’t Buy argues unfair advantage is taken in ticket touting because the high prices charged deprive poor people of an equal chance of access to the festival or whatever. A price cap ensures greater equality of access. In announcing the consultation on ticket tout regulation, the culture secretary, Lisa Nandy, echoed Sandel’s worries in saying ‘everyone deserves a fair shot at getting........

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