PASS under fire

An increasing number of licensees are claiming they would not rely on the Proof of Age Standards Scheme (PASS) card when serving customers they suspect to be underage.

In a recent poll on thePublican.com just under 100 licensees said they would not recognise hologram on the cards, 86 per cent of the respondents in total.

Neil Campbell, who chairs Pubwatch in Watford, said: "We have decided that pubs in Watford will not be accepting any form of ID other than picture driving licences and passports. Too many people have been caught out in the past because there are so many fakes going around and it really isn't worth taking the risk."

Last week Andrew Chevis, chief executive of the CitizenCard, agreed that there was limited support for the scheme in certain parts of the country.

But Malcolm Hurlston, chairman of PASS, has not been put off by these responses.

"At this stage if we have as many as 14 per cent of respondents saying they do recognise the hologram that is a good thing," said Mr Hurlston. "We have not done a great deal of promotional work and there is more to come over the next three months. By the time we have done that we expect it to be more recognisable."

Despite some reluctance to accept the PASS card licensees are coming under increasing pressure over under-age drinkers.

In the last week investigations from the Independent on Sunday and Evening Standard revealed that customers under 18 continue to be served in pubs and that fake ID cards are more prevalent now than ever before.

The British Medical Association also reported this week that teenagers in the UK are among the hardest drinkers in the world, particularly 15-year-old girls, 48 per cent of whom drink alcohol weekly.