This smells like going back to the bad old habit of governments fiddling with prices then acting surprised when shelves, or stadiums, empty. I have no love for touts who treat fans as a vein to be mined, they are living off other people’s risk, talent and effort. But the answer to an ugly market is usually more competition and clearer rules, not a minister deciding what the 'fair' margin ought to be for every gig from a pub show to Wembley. Cap too low and you simply drive the traffic to darker corners of the internet where no one checks who is selling what and chargebacks become a way of life. Cap here while doing nothing about dynamic pricing or secret presales and you are swatting a fly while a vulture circles overhead. If the government wants to keep its promise honestly, it should force transparency from primary sellers, outlaw speculative selling, and then let adults choose how much a night of music is worth to them. Telling people they may not pay above a number dreamt up in Whitehall is a very comforting sound in the short term and a very expensive illusion in the long term.