Birmingham busker calls for crackdown to be scrapped amid fears for city's future

A busker has called on Birmingham Council’s new leadership to reverse a busking crackdown in the city centre amid fears ‘spontaneous joy’ is being ‘crushed’.

David Fisher, who has been busking in Brum for 15 years, played his guitar in protest on a spot in the heart of the city this week while knowingly breaching a Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO).

The city council brought in new rules last summer to tackle street noise through a PSPO which bans musical instruments and amplification in certain streets.

The restrictions came into effect in August 2025, with the council saying it had previously received a “significant and consistent number of complaints” from residents and businesses about noise issues.

But buskers and musicians condemned the move and argued that it could contribute to the Second City becoming a “cultural wasteland”.

An online petition against the busking crackdown was signed by more than 1,500 people and even shared on Instagram by The Libertines legend Pete Doherty.

Mr Fisher is among those who are still campaigning for the council to scrap the ‘ban’.

“I’ve already stopped busking in Birmingham city centre really,” he said this week. “It’s not viable, it’s too much of a risk. I know a lot of other buskers who have done the same.

“A lot of them have been pushed out to other areas, which is inevitably going to cause more competition for pitches there. It’s had a big effect on the busking community.”

Mr Fisher continued that he had been previously fined himself, saying: “I was approached and told even though I wasn’t causing any anti-social behaviour myself, they were still going to fine me £100.

“[It made me feel] really frustrated, specifically because I asked them what problem am I causing? Do you think I’m behaving in an anti-social way?

“They said ‘no but it’s not relevant. What’s relevant is that you’re breaching the PSPO’. That’s not what PSPOs are supposed to be for.

“To criminalise busking is an awful thing to do. It feels like they’re saying that all busking is anti-social regardless of what you’re doing – I don’t think that’s fair.”

Mr Fisher went on to say a lot of buskers he had spoken to had stopped performing in the city centre and that the crackdown has had a “very direct and real impact” on their incomes.

On the atmosphere in central Birmingham, he said: “I’ve long thought there’s a growing trend towards city centres being overly sanitised and overly regulated, leaving no room for spontaneous joy.

“I think that’s a terrible thing if we crush that in our city centres.”

He added that he was hopeful the new coalition running the council – which includes Lib Dems, Greens and various independents – might be able to do something to address the situation in the future.

“Now they’ve had time to bed themselves in a bit at the council, we’re definitely going to be reaching out to them [the new leadership],” he said. “Hopefully their opinions and positions won’t have changed now they’re in power.

“My message to the current council is that musicians are struggling, they’ve been criminalised by this PSPO, that’s completely unfair.

“Please come back to the table, discuss with us and come up with a solution that works for buskers, residents and local businesses.”

‘Creeping shutdown of music’

Josie Appleton, the director of Campaign for Freedom in Everyday Life, also attended Wednesday’s protest and argued busking “brings city centres to life”.

“It creates moments of beauty and pleasure,” she said.

But she went on to claim that busking is now “being treated as anti-social behaviour”.

“That is deeply wrong,” she said. “We need to stop this creeping shutdown of music and allow musicians back on the streets.”

The Campaign for Freedom in Everyday Life has also raised concerns that fines in Birmingham could soon rise after the government said it was increasing the upper limit for a fixed penalty notice (FPN) for breaches of a PSPO to £500.

A Birmingham City Council spokesperson said: “Busking is welcome on most public land in Birmingham, but a PSPO places restrictions on the use of musical instruments and amplification within a defined area of the city centre.

“These measures are intended to address excessive noise and balance the needs of performers with those of residents, businesses and visitors.

“We ask all buskers to consider their impact on others to ensure busking is enjoyable for all people in the vicinity.”

It is understood that a decision regarding the level of penalty for breaching a PSPO in Birmingham will be taken by a council committee later this month.

If the increase in the penalty is approved, it would apply to all PSPOs – not just the one which focuses on street noise.