The provision of facilities for incidental music will be excluded by the proposed Schedule 1 (19)(b).

Yes and in the other proposal the public will be able to be provided with non-amplified instruments to enable them to entertain themselves in music and dancing, which is not performance to an audience.

However this depends on the public entertaining themselves in music and dancing being seen as "incidental music". From various comments, that seems to be the DCMS's intention, but it's not explicit in the Act and is not very clear from the guidance notes. We're left to rely on "common sense".

Common sense would tell us that only performances to an audience can qualify for any exemptions which are specifically worded as being for performances to an audience.

The only proposal which applies to the public entertaining themselves in music and dancing is to allow them to be provided with non amplified instruments, without these being licensable as Entertainment Facilities.

The tweak to the incidental exemption will make little difference as this exemption has been part of the original Act. It has proved in practice to be of little use and many Licensing Authorities, including mine, whilst insisting that participatory sessions are licensable as performances to an audience, currently do not accept that the incidental exemption can be used.

So what hope is there for sessions affected by licensing, in any of what is proposed, without some way of ensuring that Licensing Authorities comply with what has always been available to them?