Has a Tory MP saved grime?

Could John Whittingdale a Tory MP be the savior of Grime and the wider “Urban” music industry by eradicating the 696 form?

John Whittingdale is the Conservative MP for Maldon and East Chelmsford, president of the Maldon District Chamber of Commerce, he seems like an unlikely candidate, but he may well be the source of common sense the UK urban music sense has been crying out for. But as chair of the House of Commons' cross-party Culture, Media and Sport Committee, he is responsible for a new report that could help free live music from the restriction of excessive bureaucracy and unnecessary police interference.

The committee's "post-legislative scrutiny" of the 2003 Licensing Act began last summer; its findings, quietly made public at 12.01am a few days ago, are encouraging reading for music fans. The committee heard expert witness testimony drawn from everyone from Peter Stringfellow, to the secretary of the Association of Circus Proprietors of Great Britain. Whittingdale's team concluded that live music in the UK is being suffocated by paperwork, with even the smallest of performances encumbered by "draconian" and "absurd" restrictions.

To remedy this, the report recommends that venues with a capacity of less than 200 be exempted from needing a license for live music; it also recommends reintroducing the "two in a bar" exemption, whereby venues of any kind can host one or two musicians playing unamplified music: anytime, anywhere, without having to apply for unnecessary licenses six months in advance, while needing to enclose copies of the musicians' dates of birth, (which in itself can be a task).

One of the huge ramifications of the 2003 Licensing Act was that it reinforced the Metropolitan Police's hard line and some would go as far as saying discriminatory use of "Form 696", a risk assessment form that has become instrumental in shutting down grime and garage nights. Upon hearing evidence on Form 696, Whittingdale's committee were convinced that: "Police authorities are taking an increasingly authoritarian approach, especially the Metropolitan Police … The report concludes that Form 696 goes beyond the Act and its guidance to impose unreasonable conditions on events and recommends that it should be scrapped."

An example of Form 696's use as an instrument of injustice is Project Urban, a major event that had been scheduled to happen at indigO2 on 3 May, this was deemed a "high risk" event by the authorities and cancelled with only weeks to go. The promoters' story bears reading in full – they had booked an all-star cast of performers, headlined by Tinchy Stryder, forked out for tens of thousands of flyers and a cross-media advertising campaign, and were offering to put on £4,500 worth of airport-style security to appease any safety concerns. So why was it cancelled you ask? According to Project Urban's promoters, the only concrete reason for it being a "high risk" event was some missing data from their 696 form: "The only reason the event was 'high risk' was due to an administrative error regarding a missing date of birth for two artists. There was plenty of time to resubmit the form (it requires 14 days' notice), but the venue had already taken the decision upon themselves to cancel, and inform all ticket-holders." By no means is this the only example of the misuse of this form, and consequently hampering the organic growth of the urban music industry. Many artists see the 696 form as a major reason as to why they have failed so scale the heights they had envisioned, which is a fair point given the fact that live performance is the future of industry.

However, following the committee's recommendations that live-music licensing be liberalised without delay, it is now up to the Andy Burnham MP, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, to act. Let us see if he can become as much of a hero to fans of live music as the president of the Maldon District Chamber of Commerce, John Whittingdale.