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'Two-strike rule' for shops selling alcohol to under-18s

03/03/2008

Gordon Brown has hinted at a 'two strikes and you're out' rule for shops caught selling alcohol to under-18s.

The prime minister, speaking ahead of the government's review of the Licensing Act that introduced 24-hour drinking to Britain, said the authorities had "to go further" in their crackdown on errant off-licences and corner shops.

"One thing that worries me most is the number of shops and off-licences selling to people under 18," he told the Daily Mirror.

"We have to tighten up the penalties. Any shop that is selling to under-18s twice in three months should lose its licence. At the moment it is three sales in three months but we have to go further."

But Mr Brown played down the likelihood of reversing the 24-hour drinking legislation, despite claims from local authorities the act had "failed miserably".

Local Government Association (LGA) chairman Sir Simon Milton told the Daily Telegraph: "Historically this country has had a problem with drink and the chief measure we had to control the problem was licensing hours.

"The licensing act essentially tossed that away and didn't put anything new in its place."