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Licensing


At Great Yarmouth Brass, we have been very worried about the Licensing
Bill and have been lobbying to demonstrate our fears as well as seeking
clarifications. As Chairman, I have been lobbying Tony Wright, MP for
Great Yarmouth, whilst our Band's President has been lobbying a Baroness
of the House of Lords and has secured her support.

I have today spent almost an hour with Mr Wright discussing licensing
issues pertinent to the way that Great Yarmouth Brass operates. This
follows a series of communications over recent weeks where I have
described the work we do in fundraising for charities and good causes
(over =A310,000 in 2002 alone), our work with promoting music education
through our Youth Band as well as the entertainment we provide to the
thousands of audience members that we have played to in recent times.
All of these operations are carried out on a shoestring and I'm sure
that many readers will recognise that what we are doing at Great
Yarmouth is so very similar to what they are doing in their own bands
across the UK, and indeed beyond.

My fears when I first read the Bill and the various press articles were
that the financial burden would bring a swift end to all of the good
work that we and others do on such a tight budget. I wasn't sure what to
expect from our MP at the outset. If I'm honest, I thought I might get a
brush off with very little consideration of my fears for the impact on
our band and community. So I had not anticipated that much would come of
my initial letter addressed to the House of Commons in early December.

However I have to say that Mr Wright's interest has taken me by
surprise. He has been communicating with Kim Howells and other MPs to
establish the extent to which the new licensing regime will impact on
groups such as ours and has been putting our case across in the process.
He has demonstrated a clear understanding of the Bill in the context of
how the government is trying to clarify issues that are being raised.

It seems clear that the Licensing Bill will go ahead. But documents from
the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) that I have been
given today indicate that the cost implications will be much lower than
I had feared. To obtain a licence will cost between =A3100 and =A3500
with an annual charge of between =A350 and =A3150. These charges apply
to premises where entertainment is provided and will doubtless result in
an increase in hire costs in some cases, although the magnitude is not
likely to be significant.

I'm not one for defending government change. Moreover, I firmly believe
that the clarifications issued by the DCMS are the result of the mass
lobbying that we have seen through the media as well as the lobbying
done by individuals with their MPs and others.

Keep lobbying. The message is getting through where it needs to. People
are listening and they are taking an interest.

Mike Thorn, Chairman, Great Yarmouth Brass
www.greatyarmouthbrass.org.uk








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