London could get its own nighttime mayor—a role designed to advocate the benefits of the city's nightlife at the highest levels of government.
The recommendation is a key part of the London's Grassroots Music Venues Rescue Plan, which was released today (October 19th) by the Mayor's Music Venues Taskforce. The role, provisionally titled "Night Time Economy Champion," will be similar to the position occupied by Mirik Milan in Amsterdam. The report states that the champion's role would be to "bring together businesses, residents, local authorities, transport, police and emergency services to build positive relationships, review policies and maximise the potential of a sector that in the UK is worth £66 billion a year," according to the Night Time Industries Association (NTIA).
The report also gets behind "Agent of Change" principles, meaning the onus in future could be on developers to mitigate against potential problems—like noise complaints, which are often levelled against nightclubs—when building new homes close to nightclubs and other music venues.
NTIA chairman Alan Miller described the report as "great news." He added: "This is an enormous progressive move forward for us all that places the huge cultural, social and economic value of the night time at the heart of policy making and within the authorities of London." The London Music Development Board will be set up to implement the changes recommended in the report.
Photo credit: fabric