A few weeks ago a petition request was circulated around the extremely broad London live music community protesting government plans to force live music venues to introduce noise limiters. These rather annoying devices cut all the power to a PA if a certain decibel limit is reached. Needless to say Raagnagrok have more than once suffered traumatic grokus interruptus thanks to over-zealous limiters.
Now the UK govt has made an official response to the petition, stating:
We are pleased to tell you that there is no truth in claims that the Government is planning to introduce a requirement for entertainment venues to fit noise control devices.
Each Local Authority Licensing Authority considers every live music application on its merits, and decisions are made entirely by them. However, the Licensing Act 2003 does not allow mandatory conditions for live music to be imposed across the board. It would not be possible to impose such a condition without a change in the law and such a change is not, and never has been, on the Government’s agenda.
There is also no legal requirement under health and safety legislation for entertainment venues to have noise control devices fitted, nor is there any proposal.
The Government is acutely aware of the contribution that music makes to our culture and we remain committed to a vibrant and flourishing creative sector, of which live music plays an essential part.
So how did this rumour get started? It would be interesting to trace it back to its origin and show how this urban legend spread like wildfire within the confines of the musical community.
We also have to wonder how many other thousands of signatures and email addresses have been reaped on the back of such panics.
