The Rugby Football Union has proposed using “anti-pee paint” that would leave public offenders “covered in their own urine” to ease residents’ fears over plans to increase the number of music concerts staged at Twickenham.
The RFU is seeking permission from Richmond council to stage up to 15 concerts a year, but the Guardian can reveal that it encountered another setback last week when it was determined that a limit of three concerts – and only one on a Saturday – would remain as part of its new licence.
The union has also encountered strong resistance from residents, many of whom are concerned with anti-social behaviour at England matches and late-night events. The decision to maintain the licensing limit has been described as “a significant victory for those who believe the RFU’s aspirations to [be] unreasonable and unsustainable”.
The RFU has lamented how venues such as Wembley and the Tottenham Hotspur stadium are able to generate significant revenue due to looser restrictions on non-sporting events, all the more so because the union wants to raise additional funds to pay for its planned £660m overhaul of Twickenham. The chief executive, Bill Sweeney, has previously suggested the RFU could leave Twickenham and move to either Milton Keynes or Birmingham if it is not allowed to stage more concerts.
At a council meeting to discuss the RFU’s application for a new licence last week, it emerged that 192 representations against the plans had been made as well as 13 in favour. Minutes of the meeting describe a complaint that “there are regularly drunken adults urinating on properties. There is also shouting, swearing and sometimes fighting in the streets.” One representation read: “The pavements and roads are unhygienic, and children are having to walk and scoot through dried urine and excrement,” while another provided evidence showing “urination and indecent exposure” on the individual’s property.
In accompanying documents to the RFU’s submission for a new licence, the union sought to address recurring themes of residents’ concerns and how it deals with them. As well as portaloos in “known hotspots” and the presence of police officers who can issue fixed-penalty notices, the union states: “We have also recently been made aware of something called ‘anti-pee paint’ (which has been used in, for example, Yorkshire and the London Borough of Camden). In short, if you relieve yourself against a wall, you will be covered in your own urine. It also prevents the odours associated by protecting the bricks. It is not a solution in itself, but we will always continue to try to find ways to prevent this behaviour where we can.”
The RFU’s application to host more concerts is running in two parallel parts: licensing and planning. The previous licence dictated that the union could hold only three non-sporting events per year and only one could be held on a day that is not a Saturday. The union’s application for a new licence left residents opposed to the plans amid fears it would give the RFU “carte blanche”. Residents also took issue with the RFU’s application to stage up to 36 smaller events, such as weddings, until 1.30am.
In supporting documents, however, the RFU said it was not seeking to increase the number of concerts through its licensing application, insisting that it was a planning matter and it would be doing so via that avenue. Existing planning legislation states that the union can host three concerts a year but does not specify on which days of the week. The union was hoping to remove that stipulation from its new licence but Richmond council determined in its decision this past week that it would remain. Sweeney has previously expressed frustration at how “we could have had Beyoncé but she wanted three nights and we are only allowed two nights consecutively”.
The restriction over which days of the week concerts can be performed at Twickenham was added in 2018 in the aftermath of an Eminem gig. As a result, the RFU received 93 complaints across 2018 and acknowledged “that it did present its own challenges, particularly around the issue of street cleaning/litter”.
Beyoncé could have played at Twickenham in 2025 were it not for licence restrictions. Photograph: Samir Hussein/Getty Images
The fact that Richmond council decided to explicitly state the limit of three concerts, and only one not on a Saturday, would be a part of the new licence – rather than leave it to the planning process – can therefore be considered a setback to the RFU. The union was successful in its application for smaller events and can still press ahead with its planning application, which is considered by insiders to be more significant than the licensing application. If the planning application for more concerts is successful, it is understood the RFU would then have to seek an amendment to the new licence it was granted this week.
As reported by the Guardian last week, the union’s planning application encountered a delay this summer when Richmond council determined that an environmental statement was required due to fears over transport links. A report reads: “Given the uncertainty regarding the ability of the rail industry to cater for the predicted increase in passengers, there [are] significant concerns about the additional demand placed on the transport and highway network by event-goers and whether this demand can be satisfactorily managed. This is likely to result in a significant nuisance for Twickenham residents.”
The planning application process is expected to continue into next year. England will host four Tests in next month’s autumn internationals with Australia, Fiji, New Zealand and Argentina visiting Twickenham.
