Tory peers demand licensing law delay
Conservatives in the House of Lords will today make a last ditch effort to prevent new licensing laws coming into effect in ten days time.
The peers have tabled an amendment that would delay the Licensing Act 2003 – which allows for pubs and clubs to open 24 hours a day – until next summer.
“We have attempted everything possible to prevent the introduction of these deeply unpopular laws. Daily, we discover fresh reasons why it is crazy for the government to press ahead in just two weeks time,” said shadow culture secretary Theresa May.
She cited figures from the Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo) and the Local Government Association (LGA) that suggest one in ten premises might not have the necessary license when the legislation comes into force on November 24th.
“We hope the House of Lords will send a very clear message to the prime minister that he should at the very least postpone the new drinking hours until we can get a grip on binge drinking and alcohol fuelled violence,” she added.
The effort comes the day that the government launches a crackdown on drunken behaviour over Christmas – a measure that Ms May said would have no effect in the face of the increase in drinking expected when the Licensing Act comes into force.
“In ten days time we will witness the biggest relaxation of licensing laws and everyone but the government has realised that extended hours will mean more binge drinking and anti-social behaviour,” she said.
“If the government was serious about tackling drink fuelled violence they would postpone their dangerous drinking laws.”
The government believes its new licensing laws will give police greater powers to tackle drunken behaviour by transferring powers to license premises from magistrates to local authorities.
And a spokeswoman for the Department for Culture, Media and Sport insisted today that the introduction of the licensing act would not be delayed.
The spokeswoman added: “A delay would deny police tougher powers to deal with drunken disorder. It would deny pubs a more effective voice in licensing decisions that affect them and it would mean the continuation of an unjust 90-year-old curfew that punished the responsible majority for the sins of an irresponsible minority.”
