Pubs set for pre-Christmas crackdown

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The Home Office will target pubs in a Christmas crackdown to tackle drink-fuelled disorder and underage drinking.The crackdown in town centres across...

The Home Office will target pubs in a Christmas crackdown to tackle drink-fuelled disorder and underage drinking.

The crackdown in town centres across the country is the second phase of an Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) and Home Office co-ordinated campaign to cut alcohol-related violence. It will see undercover officers visit off-licences and pubs over two weeks at Christmas and New Year to check they are not serving underage customers or customers who are already drunk.

Home Office minister Hazel Blears said: "The Summer blitz on binge drinking led by the police and other partners was a real success in raising awareness of the need to tackle alcohol-related violence and disorder.

"Although many licensed premises are well run, we now know that the industry needs to do more to crack down on those that behave irresponsibly. If we are to achieve a long-term change in the culture it is vital to tackle underage drinking."

But although the Government deemed the summer blitz a major success, the licensed trade felt it was portrayed unfairly. Figures claimed that more than half of pubs visited were caught selling alcohol to under-18s. But in reality 1,825 premises - both off-licences and on-licences - were specifically targeted in sting operations. The Home Office confirmed at the time that the majority of licensed premises were already known problem premises. Just over half of these licensees - 51 per cent - were found to be selling alcohol to under-18s, which equated to 191 on-licences, including pubs, nightclubs, restaurants and bars.

A spokeswoman for the Home Office said the second stage of the operation would target those pubs already targeted in the summer as well as pubs that have not been investigated before. She said: "It will focus on the same issues as before to check that premises across the country are not behaving irresponsibly, specifically concentrating on selling alcohol to under-18s."

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