Licensing Act
Culture Media and Sport
Written answers and statements, 8 November 2006
Malcolm Moss (Shadow Minister (Culture, Media & Sport), Culture, Media & Sport; North East Cambridgeshire, Conservative)
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what factors the then Minister with responsibility for licensing took into account when she stated in July 2005 that the Licensing Act 2003 will be much better for live music.
Shaun Woodward (Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Media & Tourism), Department for Culture, Media & Sport; St Helens South, Labour)
The Government have long considered that a number of measures contained in the Licensing Act 2003 will encourage more venues to obtain authorisations to stage live music. These include: the streamlined application process; the central setting of fees; the abolition of the renewals process; and the application of only necessary and proportionate licensing conditions.
The Government also believe live music provision will benefit from the abolition of the "two in a bar rule" which, when coupled with the very high rate of some public entertainment licensing fees, had previously acted as a disincentive to more diverse forms of music.