London Mayor Sadiq Khan Confirms His Commitment to Keeping Fabric Open

Sadiq Khan, Mayor of London, has released a full statement about his commitment to finding a solution to keeping landmark club fabric open. The message is in response to an online petition to save the club that has been widely circulated in the dance music community, having reached almost 100,000 signatures of its goal of 150,000 so far. In it, he affirms his commitment to London's nightlife economy and its "iconic clubs" while also emphasizing the need to address safety issues in that sector, exemplified by two suspected drug-related deaths at fabric in the last several months.

Many DJs, producers, and other members of the nightlife ecosystem have called upon Khan to do something about the situation, including Skream, Elijah & Skilliam, Sasha, and more.

Noting that he and the rest of the Greater London Authority—the city's most powerful administrative body—does not have the jurisdiction to intervene in licensing cases like this one, he urges the numerous parties involved—including local authorities, the police, and London's music venues—to "work together … to make our clubs safer while also protecting our night time economy."

Toward that goal, he also mentions his plan to appoint a Night Czar, a position designed to "champion the value of London's night time culture whilst developing and diversifying London's night time economy," which is available for application on the city of London's website.

Khan's statement echoes a tweet he published on August 16 urging a similar solution; read his statement in full on Change.org, and read an excerpt below:

London's iconic clubs are an essential part of our cultural landscape. As Mayor, I'm determined to do more to protect them, as well as our theatres, live music venues, artists workspaces, historic buildings and pubs. It is so important that people are able to enjoy a fun and safe night out in the capital.

Clubbing needs to be safe. There have been two tragic deaths at Fabric over recent months and there are clearly issues that need addressing.

Fabric, the Metropolitan Police and Islington will of course have to take real action to protect the safety of everyone who enjoys a night out at the club.

My team have spoken to all involved in the current situation and I am urging them to find a common sense solution that ensures the club remains open while protecting the safety of those who want to enjoy London's clubbing scene.

I welcome your call for us all to work together – City Hall, London's music venues, local authorities, the police and others – to make our clubs safer while also protecting our night time economy.

The club has been closed since August 12 while authorities investigate the deaths, and last week made a statement promising to independently review their club policies and procedures for the sake of its patrons' safety.

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