Charlotte Gill

Bureaucracy is destroying the fabric of London’s nightlife

London’s nightlife is under attack. That became obvious this morning with the news that the popular club Fabric has closed for good. After a series of drug-related deaths at the venue, Islington Borough Council has decided the risk of keeping it open is too great.

It’s come as a shock to many that Fabric is finished. Indeed, a petition to keep it alive reached over 148,000 signatures – and many celebrity backers, such as Annie Mac and the Chemical Brothers pleaded with the public: save the rave.

But it was too little, too late. Another London nightclub has been forced to close. Fabric is just a small part of a much bigger problem; our party scene is in crisis, with clubs in the city declining by a third between 2005 and 2015. It’s not just these venues that are suffering; our comatose capital is causing increasing numbers of bars and restaurants to die.

The explanations for the decline of London nightlife are myriad and well-documented.

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