Legal advice: Summer blitz on alcohol-related crime

By thePublican.com's team of legal experts from London solicitors Joelson Wilson.​

The summer campaign on alcohol-related crime was heralded as a success by the police and Home Office. However, the on-licensed trade came out particularly badly in terms of being "stung".

What this says about the provision of alcohol in pubs and clubs needs assessing. But the statistics indicated that pubs and nightclubs are not strict enough when implementing systems to stop sales to underage drinkers.

Of 371 test purchase operations undertaken, 191 licensees sold alcohol to underage people. That represents 51 per cent of operations carried out - a disappointing figure for an industry already beleaguered for being "responsible" for the increase in the binge-drinking culture.

Figures indicate a high number of fixed-penalty notices were issued for drunk and disorderly behaviour during the two-month crackdown. It is interesting that the number increased in the second month.

What should we read into this - that the first month of the crackdown did not in itself serve to dissuade the public from indulging in drunken acts warranting a fixed-penalty notice - or that someone somewhere was keen to ensure that higher targets were achieved?

So, what do these figures really demonstrate? The number of successful sting operations may be good news for the Home Office, but for the licensed industry it can only serve to further tarnish a reputation for perceived lack of concern in allegedly promoting a "binge culture". This comes at a time when the industry is facing the potential politicising of licensing applications under the new Act and can only increase the obstacles facing good operators and licensees seeking to vary their licences after February 7, 2005.

We can but hope that the new licensing authorities will keep matters in perspective. It is, after all, a small minority of licensed premises that potentially blight the reputation of the vast majority.

Of the 23,570 on-licensed premises visited by police, only four per cent were found to have committed an offence.

• Fixed penalty notices may also be issued in relation to underage sales with effect from next month.