MPs suggest Taylor Swift may be awarded London Freedom Of The City
Members of the Liberal Democrats have suggested that Taylor Swift be handed the Freedom of the City of London following her ‘Eras Tour’ dates.
It comes as Swift brought her mammoth world tour to the UK capital twice this summer, including three nights at Wembley Stadium across June, followed by a recently-completed five-night run at the same venue over the past week.
The combined eight shows in the city mean that London has hosted more nights for the pop star as part of this tour than any other city globally, and her show on Tuesday (August 20) alone – which marked the last of the UK dates – is predicted to have brought as much as £300million into the local economy.
Now, to mark the huge run of London shows wrapping up, members of the Liberal Democrats have put forward the idea that the singer be granted one of the most prestigious awards in the city.
Presented on rare occasions, the award recognises outstanding achievements of an individual in their respective fields.
In their pitch, the Lib Dems highlighted the large-scale charity work of the pop star, including her donations to food banks in every UK city in which she performed. Treasury spokesperson for the party, Sarah Olney, described Swift as showcasing “endless philanthropy and using her platform to bring reforms to the music industry,” (via Metro).
“Taylor Swift is now on track to achieve her most impressive feat yet: patching part of the blank space the Conservative government left in the British economy after years of neglect,” Olney added.
“The ‘Eras Tour’ has provided hours of joy to the thousands of fans attending the shows, but the real legacy of Taylor Swift’s tour will be the lifeline it provides to our economy, so it is only right that she be recognised with London’s highest honour.”
It came just days after another party member, MP Tom Gordon, shared a selfie of him at the ‘Eras’ shows earlier this month, and also put forward an Early Day Motion in parliament recognising “the economic impact of Taylor Swift’s Eras tour on the UK economy”.
In the notion, it predicted that Swift’s tour heading to the UK throughout summer 2024 has put approximately £1billion into the local economy. It will appear on the parliamentary website from September 2.
As highlighted by Metro, Swift would need to be nominated by two elected Members of the City of London Corporation or two members of a City livery company to receive the Freedom Award.
While no Lib Dems are part of the Corporation, the chairman Chis Hayward has shared that he is open to the suggestion. “Taylor Swift’s hugely successful ‘Eras Tour’ concerts at Wembley Stadium in June and August have brought together hundreds of thousands of devoted fans and boosted the capital’s economy,” he said.
“If Taylor Swift were to be nominated to receive the Freedom and was happy to attend the ceremony, we have no doubt that she would have the best day in the City of London, exploring all of the cultural and historical highlights that we have here in the Square Mile.”
If granted, Swift wouldn’t be the first musician to be a recipient of the award. Back in 2022, Ed Sheeran was also granted the honour. Others who have received it include footballers Ian Wright and Harry Kane, theatre entrepreneur Sir Howard Panter and more.
In other Taylor Swift news, last night the singer commented on the Vienna gig cancellations and foiled terror plot after her European tour had wrapped.
“Having our Vienna shows cancelled was devastating. The reason for the cancellations filled me with a new sense of fear, and a tremendous amount of guilt because so many people had planned on coming to those shows,” she said.
“I was heartened by the love and unity I saw in the fans who banded together. I decided that all of my energy had to go toward helping to protect the nearly half a million people I had coming to see the shows in London.
“My team and I worked hand in hand with stadium staff and British authorities every day in pursuit of that goal, and I want to thank them for everything they did for us. Let me be very clear: I am not going to speak about something publicly if I think doing so might provoke those who would want to harm the fans who come to my shows.”
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Liberty Dunworth
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