UPDATE! In addition to this petition, there is now also one at http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/SaveOurSound/ in response to those who wanted a more 'official' one. It's up to you which you sign but we think it's best if you sign both because here you can add comments, which you can't do on the Number 10 website.

We the undersigned believe that sound decibel limits at UK festivals have become so restricted in recent years that they are spoiling the enjoyment of these perfectly legal events. We believe a sometimes over-zealous approach to enforcement has had a detrimental effect on overall sound quality as well as volume. Even highly professional major events like the Glastonbury and Reading Festivals have been afflicted by these increasingly draconian restrictions.

We accept that there needs to be a balance between the legitimate right to enjoy public entertainment and respect for local residents. But we believe the balance has been shifted too far in favour of a very small minority of residents who can affect the enjoyment of hundreds of thousands of festivalgoers. The customers have often paid £100 or more for a ticket and are putting significant revenue into the local economy in addition to being taxpayers and positive contributors to society in general.

We further believe that these restrictions are unreasonable and are damaging the reputation of UK festivals, causing growing numbers of people to travel abroad (often by air) in search of better sound quality - or attend illegal events in the UK instead.

We call on the Government, the Health and Safety Executive, local authorities and other interested parties to re-examine this balance and consider whether these events have become over-regulated, especially at a time when people are being encouraged to cut down on holidays abroad in order to reduce their carbon footprint.