HomeNewsWorldwide NewsPubs and off-licences to be hit with new alcohol levy

Pubs and off-licences to be hit with new alcohol levy

07 October 2009

Pubs and off-licences will be hit with a new alcohol levy aimed at tackling binge drinking under plans unveiled by the Tories today. The late night 'alco-tax' will hit shops selling drinks after 10.30pm and bars and pubs that stay open after midnight and could usher in a curfew on drinking.

It is part of a bid by the Tories to row back the 24-hour drinking culture that has swept Britain under Labour and quell alcohol-fuelled violence and anti-social behaviour.

The plans were unveiled by Shadow Home Secretary Chris Grayling at the Conservative Party conference in Manchester.

'We will tear up this Government's licensing regime', he told the party faithful this morning.

They also include:

A ban on supermarkets and other shops selling alcohol below cost price
New council and police powers to limit late licences for shops and takeaways
Tax rises on certain drinks with £1.50 added for large bottles of alcopops and £1.33 on a four-pack of super-strength beer.

Under separate plans being unveiled today, residents will be warned if they live near prolific criminal as the Tories said public protection would be their top priority.

They will say that offenders will lose their right to have their identities protected by the Human Rights Act if they continue to commit crimes.

Police forces will also be encouraged to give out photographs of burglars, car thieves and other petty criminals under the scheme.
Currently, those who commit minor crimes are allowed to keep their anonymity because officers are barred from publishing personal details.

However, the new policy will allow the return of large-scale 'wanted' posters to help track down suspects.

The plans are part of the Conservatives' hard-line approach to crime. They have already said they will rewrite human rights legislation if they win the General Election next year.

They said that under Labour, criminals enjoyed an 'automatic privacy', blaming the Human Rights Act and flawed government policy for confusion over rights that had left the public 'in the dark'.

Shadow Home Secretary Dominic Grieve said today: 'There should be a presumption in favour of public protection over privacy. Of course, there may be cases where privacy is important, such as if you are dealing with a child who may have committed an offence.

'But generally speaking, it ought to be possible for such people to be named if it is in the public interest that they should be, and we are going to make sure by publishing guidelines that that is exactly what happens in future.'

Mr Grieve, who is committed to replacing the act with a British Bill of Rights, will also outline at the party's Manchester conference his pledge to send thousands more criminals to prison.

He will say: 'Under Labour, the rights of criminals have been put before law-abiding citizens. A Conservative government will free the police, probation and prison services to name offenders where necessary to protect the public and prevent crime.'

However, the guidelines will not allow the naming of paedophiles because of fears of a rise in vigilante attacks

Detectives will also be able to name suspects who have escaped from prison or who are wanted in connection with another crime.

The plans were dismissed by Justice Secretary Jack Straw as a 'deeply confused populist announcement', which ignored the fact that police already had such powers.

He said: 'This is yet another piece of policy hastily cobbled together by the Tories.

'The outcomes of court cases are already on the public record. Courts are open so that justice can be seen to be done.

'Police are able to use this information to inform the public, and regularly make announcements about wanted criminals.

'Even Conservative supporters now accept that Tory policy on the Human Rights Act is flawed and impractical.

'I am surprised that Dominic Grieve has allowed his name to be used alongside this poorly-researched piece of work.

'It seems that he feels under such pressure from hard line right-wingers that he has abandoned his previously principled position in a vain effort to appear 'tough'. It has failed.'

Shami Chakrabarti, director of Liberty, said: 'As the Conservatives well know, there is nothing in the Human Rights Act that prevents Crimewatch being aired or the identification of dangerous offenders at large.

'It is a thoroughly good idea to provide reassuring guidance for the police service but a thoroughly bad idea to perpetuate dangerous myths about the law to grab headlines at a party political conference.'

Source: Mail Online