In September, DCMS published their long awaited consultation entitled 'Proposal to exempt regulated entertainment from the provisions of the Licensing Act 2003'. The consultation, which closes on 3rd December, attracted unanimous praise from the music industry. Plaudits ranged from 'forward-thinking' by Feargal Sharkey to 'visionary' by Christine Payne (Equity). Perhaps they should have checked with their lawyers before jumping to any conclusions, because the Government is about to make life a lot more difficult for the existing live music sector.