The haunting ‘skirl’ of the traditional instrument is no longer allowed within earshot of ‘flats, offices, shops or hotels.’

As if Scottish Nationalists needed another excuse to get angry at the English, Boris Johnson has banned bagpipes from London.

The haunting ‘skirl’ of the traditional instrument is no longer allowed within earshot of ‘flats, offices, shops or hotels.’

We’re not sure where that leaves – parks?

Pipers have accused BoJo of ‘suppressing’ the Scots – and former labour spin doctor Alistair Campbell said, ‘Having been a ­bagpiping busker myself in my student days I am a great supporter of buskers in our towns and cities.


‘They add a lot to life. Inevitably there are good and bad – that goes for any instrument – but the dismissive attitudes expressed in this advice reveal an unjustified bias against the pipes.



‘Mind you, given the nature of David Cameron’s so-called campaign, and his attempt to pit Scotland against England, it can’t be long before he and Boris Johnson ban bagpipes in London altogether.’

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A spokesperson for the Mayor of London said: ‘We’re enthusiastic about all musical instruments played by buskers but we point out that some like electric guitars and bagpipes can have more of a noise impact and that musicians should consider this when deciding where exactly to play. It is clearly not a prescription against playing these instruments and all the stakeholders who were involved in designing the code of conduct, buskers, the musicians union, local authorities, and the Met police would confirm this. Bagpipers are very welcome in London and we have many fantastic players. We also welcome feedback on the code of conduct.’