Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will support making the agent of change principle statutory to safeguard grassroots music venues from the impact of new residential developments and ensure that developers take full responsibility for mitigating noise and other environmental conflicts at the planning stage.

Grassroots music venues are vital to the UK’s music culture, offering emerging artists a platform and supporting local economies and creative jobs.

This Government wants to enable new developments such as housing to co-exist with cultural infrastructure, including music venues. The National Planning Policy Framework is clear that new development should be integrated effectively with existing businesses and community facilities, such as music venues. Existing businesses and facilities should not have unreasonable restrictions placed on them as a result of development permitted after they were established.

MHCLG intends to consult on the National Planning Policy Framework, including the agent of change principle, this year. DCMS are working with MHCLG to consider how the agent of change can be implemented as effectively as possible as part of this review, to ensure the principle works well for music venues.

In August 2025, the joint industry and HM government licensing policy sprint taskforce recommended stronger guidance or a mandatory requirement for licensing authorities to ensure that the agent of change principle is considered when making licensing decisions. The Government is reviewing the findings of the taskforce and the recent call for evidence on licensing, to inform how the agent of change principle could be considered in licensing.