THE potential impact of Brexit on the creative industries has not been fully considered, Islwyn MP Chris Evans has claimed.

Speaking in Parliament this week the Labour MP said restrictions on freedom of movement once the UK leaves the European Union, as well as the loss of European funding for the arts could have a serious impact on the sector.

He said, without opportunities for actors, musicians and film and TV crew to freely move in and out of the UK, the future of the industry was "bleak".

"Earlier this year, entertainment industry leaders expressed concerns about freedom of movement and other post-Brexit uncertainties at a House of Lords committee sitting," he said.

"It is high time the government listened to them.

"The chief executive of One Dance UK has said that freedom of movement is a vital part of its business model. Its members travel to the EU for work eight times a year, on average.

"A poll conducted by the Musicians Union when it held an event here a year ago with Equity found that only two per cent of the music industry believed that Brexit would be good for them.

"An industry that produced the Rolling Stones, the Beatles and countless other bands that broke America is worried about the future."

He added: "Music tours and festivals have a huge impact on larger companies but also on cafés, bars, hotels and other hospitality industries, and they attract huge crowds. We seem to be cutting our legs from under us."

Mr Evans added he was concerned the creative industry, currently estimated to be worth £92 billion to the UK economy was not taken seriously by the government.

"Harry Potter, James Bond and Marvel films have been some of the highest grossing productions of the past decade," he said. "Only this week Robert Downey Jr. was welcomed to south Wales for the filming of a new Marvel film. We want to welcome more people like him.

"Many of those productions have been filmed primarily in the UK and across Europe, with a significant British and European workforce.

"In 2016 alone there were 131,000 EU nationals working in the British creative industries.

"Freedom of movement for workers in the creative industries is key to the success of those projects. If we lose freedom of movement, we run the risk of limiting the production of international projects in the UK.

"If that situation affected the banking, construction or manufacturing industries I am sure that the debate would be packed with speakers, but the creative industries seem to fall to the back of the queue. It can go on no longer."

But the pro-Europe MP added he recognised it was difficult to argue in favour of freedom of movement in leave-voting areas, such as his own constituency

"When they see 'freedom of movement', they think about immigration," he said. "They worry about immigration, and that is a problem for a British success story."