The DCMS said it will cease publication of Entertainment Licensing statistics, with immediate effect.

The announcement follows a consultation which ran from 26th November 2018 to 17th January 2019.

The DCMS’ consultation proposed to discontinue the annual Entertainment Licensing Statistics release, on the basis that:
•    DCMS are not aware of many users of these statistics
•    Due to the de-regulation of various types of entertainment within the Licensing Act, the statistics may not reflect an accurate picture of the number of premises and clubs hosting entertainment events.
•    Non-response from local authorities has been gradually increasing, meaning more of the estimates are being imputed, based on assumptions, which decreases the robustness of the overall figures over time.

The DCMS has now announced that “…we do not believe that there is sufficient justification to warrant the continued production of the DCMS Entertainment Licensing statistics. DCMS will therefore cease publication of Entertainment Licensing statistics, with immediate effect.”