MP asks pubs to pay up :: Wessex Scene Online

MP asks pubs to pay up

4th January 2005
Henry Palmer

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John Denham, the Labour MP for Southampton Itchen, has called on town-centre pubs and clubs to pay up to Ł30,000 a year to police forces and local authorities to help combat the effects of binge drinking.

The scheme is designed to help tackle the violent and disorderly crimes that arise from excessive drinking.

Under the proposals, pubs and clubs in town centres would pay a yearly levy of anything from a few hundred pounds to thirty thousand pounds in order to pay for 1,800 additional police officers on weekends.

With 38,000 deaths a year attributed to alcohol abuse, the scheme has been backed by local authorities keen to ensure safer drinking and fewer alcohol-related crimes.

Speaking exclusively to the Wessex Scene, Mr. Denham said: "This should work to the benefit of students – by contributing to the cost of policing, the pubs, clubs and students in Southampton and all over the UK can be safer."

Although the scheme has drawn approval from many sectors, the prospect of establishments raising the price of their drinks has worried many students.

However, Mr. Denham moved to reassure student drinkers when he claimed: "The relatively low financial costs of this should be absorbed by the chains which run the pubs. More police will provide peace of mind for drinkers and non-drinkers alike, and reduce crime."

Since his election in 1997, Mr. Denham, a former SUSU President, has proved popular with students. As Minister for Children and Young People, he was directly involved in several initiatives to persuade students to become involved in the political process.

His resignation in March 2003 from the Home Office in protest at the invasion of Iraq was well received by many students.