The Proclaimers vent anger at touts for '˜scandalous' tour prices

The Proclaimers performing at Party at the Palacein Linlithgow, Picture: Michael Gillen

Twins Charlie and Craig Reid have called on the government to introduce new laws to clamp down on touts buying up tickets for sought after gigs and ripping off genuine fans.

Less than one hour after they went on sale last month, 30,000 tickets for the musical duo’s Scottish tour later this year sold out.

Tickets for concerts in Edinburgh, Dunfermline, Perth, Glasgow, Inverness, Dundee, Motherwell and Stirling were snapped up within minutes.

The Proclaimers sell-out 30,000 tickets in less than an hour.

The briefs, which have a face value of £35.75, were quickly being sold on secondary ticket sites such as Stubhub and Viagogo for up to £175.

The 56-year-old brothers told of their frustration at the practice and apologised to fans who had missed out.

In a statement, they said: “Apologies to all the fans who encountered frustrations via the Ticketmaster system and failed to get tickets.

“Sorry also that within minutes we were seeing touts selling tickets at scandalous prices via secondary selling sites.

“This is a terrible situation that affects the whole market place that unfortunately is beyond our control.

“We hope that laws can come into effect as soon as possible to prohibit this practice.”

New laws coming into force later this year include a ban on internet bots that siphon off tickets in bulk and measures force touts to be more transparent.

However MPs at Westminster have been urged to go further and pass a law that would put a cap of 10 per cent on ticket mark-ups.

The Rolling Stone latest tour, which will see them play a gig at Murrayfield in Edinburgh this summer, has also been targeted by touts who are charging up to £1000 for a ticket. Last week, the band’s spokesman also called on the government to change the law.

The Proclaimers’ upcoming UK and Ireland tour will see the twins play a total of 39 dates on top of the summer festival appearances already announced. Their new album is set to be recorded in the spring with a summer release date expected.

The Edinburgh-born duo rose to prominence in the late 1980s after appearing on British pop music TV programme The Tube on Channel Four.

Their single Letter from America peaked at number three in the UK Singles Chart and their debut album This Is the Story was a top seller.

Their follow-up album Sunshine on Leith featured singles I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles), I’m On My Way and title track Sunshine on Leith - all of which have gone on to become anthems.

A well-known stage musical featuring their songs called Sunshine on Leith was created in 2007 and adapted as a feature film bearing the same name in 2013.

Join our Facebook group Our Edinburgh to share images and news from and around the Capital