Live music performances for 100 people or less will no longer need to be licensed, under proposals announced by licensing minister, Gerry Sutcliffe.

At the moment, anyone wanting to put on live music must have a premises licence, a club premises certificate or a temporary event notice, although there are some exceptions for incidental, background music. An exemption would ensure that all licensed premises such as pubs and clubs would be able to put on small scale live music, regardless of whether or not their existing licence included a provision for staging entertainment events. Unlicensed premises such as cafes, restaurants, village halls and record shops would also be able to host events without the need of for a licence.

However, to ensure that any concerns of people living close to venues are taken into account, the exemption would only apply to performances that are indoors, and take place between 8am and 11pm. Martin Rawlings, director of pub and leisure at the British Beer and Pub Association said: "The BBPA welcomes any measures that can help pubs overcome existing barriers to putting on live music, helping aspiring and established musicians to reach audiences while at the same time boosting business, particularly during these difficult economic times."