ADZs: the chaos continues

Do we have another "I told you so" moment on our hands?

Ever since alcohol disorder zones (ADZs) were first mooted three years ago, the pub trade has been highly vocal in its objections. The polluter pays system has continually been slammed by the trade as unfair and unnecessary. Despite this the government has ploughed on with efforts to introduce them.

But why? It seems everyone is against them - even MPs and Lords. The regulations covering ADZs are, in the words of a parliamentary joint committee, "defectively drafted".

And, in the opinion of a Lords select committee assessing the regulations, they are "bureaucratic" and unnecessary. That's coming from people within Parliament - let alone those who will be directly affected.

Like the Licensing Act, where the myth of 24-hour drinking has been dispelled, ADZs are now very much an "I told you so" moment for the industry. Opposition outside the trade

But it's not just the pub trade that is against these measures.

Even local councils, which will be responsible for applying to have an ADZ, are wary of them. As far back as 2005, Richmond Council complained they were "overcomplicated and contradictory". And opinions on them have altered little since.

LACORS, the local authority co-ordinating body, has made representations to the Home Office about the regulations.

A spokesman said: "While we have some serious misgivings about the costs and implementation of ADZs, we will continue to work with the Home Office to make sure that guidance produced for local authorities is completely unambiguous."

So what are the alternatives? Police already have powers within the Licensing Act to deal with problem venues.

And for a long time Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) have been seen as a fairer alternative to ADZs. The concept of BIDs, which were originally developed in the US, is a partnership scheme between local businesses to fund environmental improvements and provide "enhanced local services".

And it is telling that in the time since ADZs were first talked about nearly 60 BIDs have sprouted up - and are proving successful.

Martin Rawlings, the British Beer & Pub Association's director of pub & leisure, is a fan of BIDs. "They are a much better alternative," he says. "Those that have been put in place since this legislation was introduced are really making a difference.

"The trouble with ADZs is they are not democratic, they are imposed and I don't believe you're going to encourage compliance - it should be a partnership, then you will see benefits."

Coming soon…

But whether the trade likes it or not, ADZs are still on course to see the light of day. Despite on-going delays over the re-drafted regulations, the measures are still written into the Violent Crime Reduction Act.

The Home Office originally promised that ADZs would be in place last month, but the regulations will not be debated until later this month - and may not be live until March.

Even when they arrive it will not be the end of the problems. Pubs which are members of an accreditation scheme will receive a 90 per cent discount on payments towards the ADZ.

And as it stands premises where alcohol is not the primary reason for people visiting will be exempt from having to contribute at all - which could be up to £100 a week. This means supermarkets and convenience stores will get off scot-free.

Is this fair? Of course not, the trade argues. And Paul Smith, executive director at the Bar Entertainment & Dance Association, regards this as a recipe for disaster.

He feels that pub and bar operators will not stand for the off-trade being offered an exemption.

"At the moment you could drive a horse and cart through the middle of the regulations," he says. "I would be incredibly surprised if there are not legal challenges to ADZs. If you have on-trade operators being made to contribute but then supermarkets, which make hundreds of thousands of pounds from alcohol sales, are exempt, that is not fair."

Smith also remains unconvinced ADZs will be implemented in their "current form".

"Just fixing the regs is not going to get to the heart of it," he says.

Furious licensees

Operators are also angry about the idea of ADZs. Anita Adams, licensee of the Golden Slipper in York, is furious supermarkets have been excluded from the charges.

"The only people who should be exempt are those who don't sell alcohol," she says. "When supermarkets are selling it at such ridiculously low prices they should be made to pay the majority of the costs."

Meanwhile, Mark Jones, chairman of pub and bar group Premium Bars and Restaurants, suggests the government should look at changing the name of ADZs.

"I would suggest the government softens the language currently being used and replaces alcohol disorder zone with alcohol control area. This might more accurately reflect the objectives and would gain the required goodwill of pub operators."

However, the Home Office insists that ADZs will be a "last resort". A spokeswoman said: "ADZs are designed to provide a short period of targeted activity in a very small number of areas to clean up the alcohol-related problems which blight the lives of local residents.

"They are just one of a range of tools and powers which we have given to police and local authorities to clamp down on alcohol-related violence and anti-social behaviour and its causes, and are a measure of last resort."

All the trade can hope for is that local authorities shy away from introducing ADZs. As has been argued previously, making an area an ADZ could be counter-protective and act as a beacon to troublemakers.

But with 2008 set to be the year the government gets tough on alcohol, pubs could face another unwanted battle. Will common sense prevail? Let's not hold our breath.

ADZs: how they have unfolded

January 2005​ - Government announces plan for paid-for policing in the form of alcohol disorder zones. Then Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell says: "The binge-drinking situation is worse now than it was five years ago and we are looking to punish the perpetrator, make the polluter pay and get individuals to take more responsibility."

April 2005​ - ADZs are announced as a key Labour manifesto commitment for the next five years

June 2005 ​- Violent Crime Reduction Bill, of which ADZs are a part, has first reading in Parliament

November 2006​ - Violent Crime Reduction Act receives Royal Assent, becoming law

November 2007​ - Regulations covering ADZs laid before Parliament

December 2007​ - Regulations withdrawn for re-drafting

January 2008​ - Regulations re-laid in Parliament with changes

House of Lords Committee brands ADZs "bureaucratic and unnecessary

Parliamentary Joint Committee calls the re-drafted regulations "defective"

February 2008 ​- Re-drafted regulations to be debated in Parliament? Under what circumstances will councils bring in an ADZ?

Councils will be able to designate an ADZ as the part of the Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006, "where there is nuisance, disorder or annoyance associated with the consumption of alcohol in the area or the consumption of alcohol supplied in the area which is likely to be repeated".