17-Sep-2009 By John Harrington
The Home Office says there's a "clear case" for mandatory alcohol retailing code to be introduced soon — despite calls from Business Secretary...
04-Sep-2009 By Gemma McKenna
A leading Hastings licensee is to meet Home Office officials to resolve the dispute over the council's hardline approach to licence reviews. Stephen...
Trade outrage over plastic pint glass plan
27-Aug-2009 By James Wilmore
Government plans to produce a new type of plastic pint glass for pubs have provoked outrage from the trade. Licensees, trade and consumer groups...
New pint glass designers face "big ask" says BBPA
25-Aug-2009 By James Wilmore
The British Beer & Pub Association has warned that designers for a new plastic pint glass face a "big ask" to invent something that looks and...
24-Aug-2009 By Ewan Turney
The traditional pub pint glass is under threat and may be replaced by a range of polycarbonate alternatives. The Design Council has been asked to...
20-Aug-2009 By John Harrington
The Government has been asked to clarify whether licensees and doorstaff can legally confiscate ID that's used fraudulently to buy alcohol underage....
13-Aug-2009 By John Harrington
A Government minister has promised to work with National Pubwatch on its Court not Caution campaign.
06-Aug-2009 By John Harrington
The trade and others have been given longer to respond to the Government's consultation on its controversial mandatory alcohol retailing code, the MA...
Do we really need a mandatory code?
30-Jul-2009 By James Wilmore
Is there anybody out there in favour of the government's mandatory code of practice? Judging by the Home Office consultation events so far, there is...
Government minister defends mandatory code
27-Jul-2009 By Matt Eley Matt
A Home Office minister has defended plans to tackle irresponsible alcohol sales with a mandatory code, but said he is "committed to assessing all the...
Lack of evidence pre-loading causes problems, says Home Office
24-Jul-2009 By James Wilmore
A government official has said the reason it is not imposing national laws around supermarket alcohol deals is because there isn't enough evidence...
Government admits 'no ADZs' - a year since introduction
22-Jul-2009 By James Wilmore
The government has admitted that zero alcohol disorder zones (ADZs) have been introduced more than a year after the much-hyped measures were...
08-Jul-2009 By John Harrington
Lords have challenged the Government to prove why a two-strikes-and-you're-out rule is needed for underage alcohol sales. The plan was agreed during...
Code consultation events kick-off
07-Jul-2009 By James Wilmore
The first in a series of 10 government-run consultation events on the controversial mandatory code of practice kicks-off today (Tuesday) in...
Licensees urged to attend mandatory code meetings
24-Jun-2009 By James Wilmore
A series of 10 regional consultation events will take place next month covering the government's controversial mandatory code of practice - and...
24-Jun-2009 By John Harrington
The Government is embarking on a 10-day national tour to "inform the future development" of its controversial mandatory alcohol retailing code. Home...
Trade chiefs to meet Home Office over crackdown plan
15-Jun-2009 By James Wilmore
Industry chiefs are meeting Home Office officials this week as part of on-going attempts to persuade the government to water down its controversial...
Best Bar None scheme "matter of urgency" in Oldham
27-May-2009 By James Wilmore
Trade leaders will introduce a Best Bar None scheme in Oldham as a "matter of urgency" as part of a bid stop the council reviewing the licences of...
08-May-2009 By Martyn Leek, M&C Report
The Government wants to foster a change of culture to encourage responsible drinking in the same way that it introduced seatbelts in the 1980s,...
08-May-2009 By Peter Coulson
Youngsters using a fake proof of age to buy alcohol face little deterrent compared to licensees who may lose their livelihood, says Peter Coulson.
30-Apr-2009 By John Harrington
An MP offered his area to "road-test" the idea of £80 penalties for youngsters who use fake ID to try to buy alcohol. However, Home Office minister...
24-Apr-2009 By Peter Coulson
Price is not a key element to over-indulgence — it depends entirely on the circumstances and the venue, says Peter Coulson.
Calls to alter underage fake ID penalty
22-Apr-2009 By James Wilmore
A determined licensee is campaigning for a change in law over the punishment underage drinkers receive for using fake IDs, in a bid to stamp out the...
21-Apr-2009 By John Harrington
The man heading the national rollout of Best Bar None hopes the number of schemes will almost double to 150 over the next year. It's after the Home...
19-Mar-2009 By John Harrington
In an exclusive interview with the MA, Home Office minister Alan Campbell also suggests plans for the mandatory alcohol retailing code could be amended.
27-Feb-2009 By Peter Coulson
the Government has chopped and changed its stance on the power to impose conditions on premises licences by the Home Secretary and local licensing authorities, says Peter Coulson.
26-Feb-2009 By Tony Halstead
Four major trade groups are consulting lawyers about the legality of new Home Office plans. These would give councils powers to impose draconian...
National code needed to avoid "postcode lottery
16-Feb-2009 By James Wilmore
A Home Office minister has argued that mandatory national conditions, as part of an industry code of practice, are essential to avoid a "postcode...
13-Feb-2009 By Peter Coulson
If ever there was a time to take precautions, it is now, when the Government is about to tighten up the law specifically directed at the holders of premises licences, says Peter Coulson.
'Drunken thugs to be given Asbos'
23-Dec-2008 By Matt Eley Matt
Drunken thugs will be given booze Asbos from next summer in a crackdown announced today. Drinking Banning Orders that stop yobs going into pubs and...
13-Nov-2008 By Ewan Turney
Binge drinkers arrested for alcohol related offences in nine areas across the country will be forced to attend counselling sessions to confront their...
09-Oct-2008 By John Harrington
The Government has abandoned plans for a centrally-led Christmas alcohol crackdown for 2008 targeting sales to under-18s and drunks. Instead, local...
Home Office alcohol official to speak at BBN event
29-Aug-2008 By James Wilmore
A top Home Office official, who deals with alcohol policy, has been revealed as the keynote speaker at the first National Best Bar None (BBN)...
ALMR hits back at crime rise claim
12-Aug-2008
A leading trade body has criticised claims that alcohol fuelled anti-social behaviour has soared since the Licensing Act. Home Office figures show...
Damning report ignores existing evidence, say trade groups
21-Jul-2008 By James Wilmore
Trade bodies have hit back at a damning report into the industry's codes of practice, arguing it "totally ignores existing hard evidence". The...
They're out to get us
05-Jun-2008 By John Harrington john.harrington@william-reed.co.
Mandatory schemes would ramp up costs The Government wants voluntary schemes such as Challenge 21 and the code on responsible drinks promotions made...
Few pubs caught in Xmas stings
17-Apr-2008 By John Harrington john.harrington@william-reed.co
Drunks crackdown 'was waste of money' Very few pubs sold to drunks during the controversial Christmas crackdown — leading to accusations that the...
Home Office using 'sledghammer to crack a nut'
11-Apr-2008 By Matt Eley Matt
A leading trade group has urged the government to spend money on helping pubs thrive rather than wasting cash on trying to spot drunks.Nick Bish,...
Drunks sting reveals small number of incidents
09-Apr-2008 By James Wilmore
A month-long police clampdown on more than 1,700 problem pubs resulted in just three warnings to licensees, one review of a licence and one premises...
Home Office drinks industry report delayed
01-Apr-2008 By Matt Eley Matt
The publication of a Home Office commissioned report into the drinks industry has been delayed. In February, Home Secretary Jacqui Smith announced...
19-Mar-2008 By John Harrington
BBPA slams the Home Office for giving just three days to respond
Leaked report reveals crime down since Licensing Act
28-Feb-2008 By James Wilmore
Fears the Licensing Act would lead to widespread Armageddon are set to be banished by the Home Office's official review of the legislation. The...
Home Office dismisses damning Licensing Act survey
26-Feb-2008 By James Wilmore
The Home Office has dismissed a report claiming the Licensing Act has increased the amount of alcohol-related incidents police have to deal with.An...
ADZs: trade chiefs meet with Home Office as delays continue
31-Jan-2008 By James Wilmore
The Home Office has been forced into an embarrassing climbdown on its claim that alcohol disorder zones (ADZs) would become law by the end of...
ADZs delay drags on
29-Jan-2008 By James Wilmore
The Home Office has been forced to backtrack on its promise that alcohol disorder zones (ADZs) would be in place this month. A spokeswoman told...
Casting a political shadow
24-Jan-2008
As a footnote to the article above, it may have escaped the notice of one or two of you that all the current licensed trade legislation is coming...
23-Jan-2008
Almost three-quarters of underage drinkers in deprived areas get their booze from supermarkets or parents
ADZs will be in place in weeks, Home Office insists
08-Jan-2008 By James Wilmore
The Home Office is insisting that alcohol disorder zones (ADZs) will be introduced this month, despite a delay in finalising the regulations. The...
Where are they coming from?
13-Dec-2007
There has been much talk about "traceability" recently. This means being able to tell where a bottle of alcohol has come from. Obviously, in terms...
Police told how to spot a drunk
28-Nov-2007 By James Wilmore
New Home Office guidelines on the definition of a drunk - issued to police as part of a pre-Christmas sting operation - have been revealed...
