Blunkett’s fear over 24-hour drinking
Former Home Secretary David Blunkett tried to block Government plans to introduce 24-hour drinking, according to leaked Whitehall memos.
In a letter to Tony Blair, the then Home Secretary warned the Prime Minister that the proposals were a “leap in the dark” that would risk “worsening the situation” of violent crime.
Extracts from 100 pages of internal Whitehall documents, printed in today’s Sunday Times, reveal divisions over the Government decision to liberalise Britain’s licensing laws.
The newspaper reports that concerns raised by Mr Blunkett and his officials were overruled by the Prime Minister and Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell, who insist that the proposed reform of Britain’s licensing laws will end the culture of binge drinking.
The paper claims that a document from Mr Blair’s strategy unit was redrafted to remove evidence of a link between drink and the 19,000 sex assaults a year and the “adverse” impact on local residents.
In addition, it is reported that Ms Jowell wished to change the definition of binge drinking in order to downplay the extent of the problem.
Reference is also made to plans to charge licensees compulsory levies in order to pay for extra policing; a claim denied by Culture Minister Richard Caborn this week.
The documents suggest that Downing Street is determined to implement the manifesto commitment by the middle of 2005, with a leaked memo from Mr Caborn warning Mr Blunkett to drop his opposition to the plans.
“The atmosphere is becoming feverish and it will be damaging if it continues,” Mr Caborn said in the note to the then Home Secretary.
The leaks come amid recent criticism of the proposals, including from some senior police officers.
Meanwhile, Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell has warned that pubs face a crackdown on “happy hour” drink promotions as part of Government efforts to tackle binge drinking.
‘What has done more damage than anything else is free drinks promotions and happy hours. They are so aggressively marketed,” said Ms Jowell in an interview with The Observer.
Whilst continuing to reject the idea of a compulsory levy on pubs and clubs to pay for extra policing, the Culture Secretary said licensees could face a voluntary levy to provide more resources to police drinkers.
