Bedtime blues: London ‘killing off nightlife’ as UK city with strictest licensing rules

London has the earliest council-mandated bedtime of any other city in the UK as a result of policies in nightlife districts that oppose any new bar or restaurant opening past 11pm. These strict restrictions on pubs and bars are “killing off nightlife” in the capital, experts have said, while other cities including Manchester , Birmingham and Leeds are experiencing an after-hours boom because they have more lenient rules. Councils across the capital have “core hours policies” in place, meaning that when new venues wish to open, the licensing committee is directed to refuse any openings past a certain time. In Hackney – the east London borough previously known for its vibrant nightlife – this curfew is set at 11pm on weeknights and midnight on weekends. A taxi drives past people gathering outside a bar in Hackney in London. The curfew is set at 11pm on weeknights and midnight on weekends. Photograph: Jack Taylor/Getty Westminster council, which is in charge of Soho and the West End, London’s nightlife district, has a core hours policy meaning applications for new bars and restaurants opening past 11.30pm on weeknights and midnight on weekends are refused. The council has defined its main nightlife district as what it calls a “cumulative impact zone” (CIZ), which means it will refuse all licences for any new bar or pub unless there are “exceptional circumstances involved”. …