If it is, then our worst fears may have been groundless.

It is far too early to say much about our worst fears but the legislation was not sold to us as just keeping things as they were.

Licencees and the local officers have been rather too busy with just the Premises Licence side of things to be much concerned with live music.

Much of the improvement that you seem to see for live music - I suggest comes more from the uncertainty of this current transition period. For none of the new applications have yet to take effect and as before - so much will be down to local enforcement of music issues.