PELs can be very expensive and require venues to meet strict rules regarding access and fire safety, which often means expensive structural alterations, such as the widening of exits, installation of fire doors and redesign of lavatories. The government claims its proposals will remove the obstacles to PEL applications because license fees will be set centrally, regardless of whether live music is provided, and will also address issues of public safety, noise and crime and disorder.
However, it is feared that license applications under the proposed system will still lead to the same round of assessments and objections from local authorities and residents as before. Furthermore, the exemption of broadcast entertainment (radio and satellite/terrestrial television) from the proposals has angered musicians and the groups representing them: it will be acceptable for a pub to be filled with people watching an England football match via satellite, for example, but a criminal offence if they watch so much as a single live musician; quite how this will tackle crime and disorder is unclear. Interestingly, evidence of noise complaint statistics suggests that live music in pubs and bars is, at most, a negligible source of noise complaints.
The Musicians' Union is lobbying Parliament for an automatic permission for live music where it is secondary to a venue’s main business, e.g. a pub. This is the case in Scotland, where live music is allowed up to 11pm under these terms without a PEL.
The proposals are due to feature in the Queen’s speech at the State Opening of Parliament on 13 November, and could become law during next year. The campaign to alter the proposals before this time is centred around David Heath MP’s Early Day Motion (EDM) 1182. To date, 216 MPs have signed their name to EDM 1182 - leaving over 200 who have not.
EDM 1182 reads: "That this House recognises the social, cultural and economic value of a thriving grass roots entertainment industry; notes that entertainment and music provision in venues ranging from pubs to village halls not only attracts vital custom but also encourages cultural diversity and growth; further notes that under the current two in a bar system it is illegal to allow, for instance, three folk singers to perform in a pub; agrees with the Minister for Sport that the current Public Entertainment Licensing system is archaic and just plain daft; and calls upon the Government to reform licensing laws to reduce the cost and bureaucracy of entertainment licensing and promote the use of live music and singing in pubs and clubs; and urges the Government to introduce a Licensing Law Reform Bill in the next Queen's Speech."
Most people agree that the health of live music at this grass roots level will directly affect the future of live performance at the highest levels. We are joining Carlsbro, the MU, the MIA and many other concerned bodies in asking everyone who enjoys live music to write to their MPs and urge them to sign EDM 1182. The remaining 200+ MPs still have a few weeks in which to do this: to find out if your MP needs more encouragement, visit the government website at the web address below.
(Lee Baldock)
