Actor Clive Hurst, who sits on the Equity Council, has been dubbed a “hero” by our sister paper, The Daily Mirror, for unearthing the scams.
He said: “The entertainment industry is the only sector where taking money from someone to find them employment is legal. They should take a cut once they have found you work.
“This is a loophole that needs to be closed.
“There are legitimate agencies out there but there are others who take the money and then have no obligation to find anyone any work.
“Most of them set up, take the money and then cease trading weeks later.
“They are usually run by the same people and take their show on the road going to different places.
“It gives the industry a bad name.
“A sub committee of the Department for Business, Enterprise & Regulatory Reform will meet on Monday to debate new rules banning the taking of fees at casting sessions and introducing a seven day cooling off period so cheques can be cancelled if people so wish.
“This doesn’t go far enough, however, the Government needs to ban up-front fees altogether.”
