Pete McLelland of Hobgoblin Music has asked me to pass this on

Pete McClelland
pete@mcmail.demon.co.uk

This document sums up my personal views and those of all of us at Hobgoblin
Music on the licensing disaster which is unfolding. I know that Hamish
Birchall and others have put in a lot of work on everyone's behalf on the licensing issue, but most musicians are still not at all aware of what is going on. Please circulate this document as widely as possible, and feel free to contact me with any helpful ideas. The bill itself can be found
here:

LIcensing BIlland here is an article from yesterday's Times The Times

The new Licensing Bill has been introduced to parliament on 14th November
2002. I believe it is an assault on our civil liberties as it clearly restricts participation in the performing arts.


If passed as is it will be a

disaster for musicians, event organisers, music teachers, studios and retailers, and bring repression unseen for centuries for our whole musical culture in England and Wales.



No other country in the world restricts the

arts in such a way.

It is essential that maximum effort is put in by everyone affected right now
to try to get the bill amended as far as possible to deal with the main
objections listed here.


This can be achieved
by lobbying of your MP - write

to them now -


by contacting the media in your area,
by offering your support to the campaigning

bodies

the Musicians Union,
The Music Industries Association
the Arts Council.

Key Objections:


1. Making music should not be a licensable activity. Live Music should not be
licensed at all - it isn't in Scotland, and most other countries. Existing
and recently enhanced health and safety, fire, and noise regulations are
already in place across the whole of the UK and provide adequate protection
in themselves. The licensing procedure requires clearance from police, fire,
health & safety, local authority, and local residents, and may come with
expensive conditions attached. It will not be a simple matter at all.


2 The scope of locations covered is far too wide. The new Act will make
music licensable not just in pubs and clubs and places where alcohol is
sold, but also in private homes and gardens, in churches, fields and all
other places. This is not a trivial license easily obtained, it is the same
one as required to sell alcohol in pubs. There can be no justification for
requiring a license to make music in these secondary locations. Tens of
thousands of weddings, private parties, village fetes, School concerts etc
will be banned.

3 The punishment proposed is way too strong. It should not be a criminal
offence punishable by 6 months in prison or a #20,000 fine to play music.
The penalties are far too strong. This is a clear civil liberties issue. The
Musicians should not be liable to prosecution themselves if hired to play in
unlicensed premises (Clause 134 makes them liable) (Clause 188 makes any
location at all count as premises). Musicians will always have to check
first whether a license is in place before performing, and this may not be
easy in practice.


4 The scope of activities covered is far too wide. A new activity "Provision
of "Entertainment Facilities" will become licensable (schedule 1, paragraph
3). This vague clause will catch Music Shops, Music Studios, and Music and
Dance teachers as it stands. All of these activities will require a license.
It will become illegal, and punishable by prison to teach music, use a
rehearsal room, try out an instrument in a music shop, make a recording in a recording studio, unless a license is first obtained.

5 Amplified broadcasts still legal. It cannot be right that amplified
broadcast events should be legal while singing happy birthday by a single
person will be illegal.


6 Folk Traditions under even greater threat. Also the folk traditions of
this country have been handed down in pubs for centuries, this new "none in
a bar" law will severely harm a national treasure which was already under
threat from the existing "two in a bar" law. It cannot be right that
Scottish traditions can be continued, while English and Welsh ones are to be
made illegal.

Specific Issues, and Amendments Needed

1 Schedule 1, paragraph 1 states that music will be a licensable activity if
the entertainment meets these two criteria: If it is to any extent for the
public or for members of a club, and it is also for consideration and with a
view to profit.

Sub-paragraph (6) states that raising money for charity counts as being for
profit.

Sub-paragraph (4) states that if any charge is made by any person concerned
in the organisation or management of the event (this might include a charge
by the bandleader to the organiser) or if any charge is paid by those
entertained, then the entertainment will count as being for consideration.


Paragraph 1 will catch any private party or wedding reception where an
entertainer is paid. It will also catch buskers, school concerts, choral
society events, school and village fetes, and many other currently legal
events. It will not be possible or practicable for the organiser of such a
one off event to obtain a full entertainment and drinks license, nor will
they know how to go about it even if it is made relatively easy. The events
will all have to be cancelled. Dr Howells (the culture minister) has stated
that the bill intends to make all music licensable where the artist is paid
to perform.

Subparagraph (4) seems to be the key issue here, if it were amended to
specifically not include payment to performers at an otherwise unlicensable
event, things would be much better.


2 Schedule 1 paragraph 3 which refers to "Entertainment Facilities" is
completely unacceptable. It includes the whole infrastructure of music
making in this country. This whole concept needs removing from the bill.

Examples

As an example, if you put up a marquee in your garden for your daughter's
wedding, and hire a band to play, you will be a criminal if you don't have a
licence. The band leader will be a criminal too. Both of you may go to jail,
and gain a criminal record.

Other soon to be illegal activities: Busking, Music Teaching, Selling
musical instruments, Rehearsing, Hospital concerts, Fundraiser in the
village hall, and much more.

The current laws are enforced very zealously by many authorities at present.
A landlord has recently been fined a considerable amount for allowing four
customers to sing Happy Birthday. Many other pub based folk clubs and
sessions have been shut down. We must expect this over zealous
interpretation to be applied to any new law, so it is very important that no
ambiguity is there for the local authorities to exploit.

Pete McClelland (Hobgoblin Music)




Useful contacts:


Hamish Birchall hab.drum@virgin.net
Pete McClelland

pete@hobgoblin.co.uk


House of Commons, London SW1A 0AA,
House of Lords SW1A

0WP,


Tessa Jowell MP (minister for culture)
Kim Howells MP (minister for

tourism, film and broadcasting),


Malcolm Moss MP (conservative spokesperson

on licensing),


John Whittingdale (conservative spokesperson on culture),


Paul Evans House of Commons Joint Committee on Human Rights,
www.faxyourmp.com