Shaping the Night: How Licensing, Social Divisions and Informal Social Controls Mould the Form and Content of Nightlife

• NCJ Number: 227792
• Journal: Crime Prevention and Community Safety Volume: 11 Issue: 3 Dated: July 2009 Pages: 219-234
• Author(s): Phil Hadfield; Fiona Measham
• Date Published: July 2009
• Length: 16 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Issue Overview
• Language: English
• Country: United Kingdom

Annotation

This paper examines the licensing of establishments as premises for various night-time activities as a governmental tool for controlling crime and disorder in the night-time economy (NTE) of Great Britain.

Abstract

Using recent contrasting examples from the English and Welsh experience - the regulation of live music events and lap dancing - this paper shows how licensing frameworks endorse particular social, cultural, and economic activities while criminalizing, demonizing, and suppressing others. Under previous legislation (Licensing Act 1964), a so-called 'two-in-a-bar' rule allowed pubs and other licensed premises to host up to two live music performers without needing a public entertainment license in addition to their license to sell alcohol. The Licensing Act 2003 removed this exemption, requiring all live music provisions to be part of the new, all-encompassing premises license. This has meant that in many smaller venues, such as bars (where music is not the main focus), in which provision for live music was not included in their licensing, it is now increasingly difficult to host live music because it was not part of the original licensing agreement. Regarding lap-dancing venues, on the other hand, the Licensing Act 2003 has drawn no distinction between contemporary lap dancing and other forms of pub and club 'entertainment', such as cabaret and karaoke. The contrasting examples of licensing applications for lap-dancing and live music show how cultural activities can be suppressed or facilitated through licensing, with little or no thoughtful justification. The fact that the Licensing Act 2003 has not, thus far, transformed the drinking culture of England and Wales, or caused a shift away from drinking as the central focus of social and economic activities in the NTE should not be surprising. The implementation of any legislation is complicated by interlocking variables related to cultural and economic priorities and power that is resistant and adaptive to change. 61 references