POLICE and licensing bosses have admitted they can't do anything about a £5.99 all-you-can drink offer - until there is an increase in crime or disorder.
The M.E.N. revealed the Tokyo nightclub in Oldham was offering the cut-prize booze bonanza.
Health experts and politicians have condemned the deal which promises a `night of mayhem'. But licensing bosses at the council say the law does not prevent such offers which allows revellers to swig as many drinks as they like for the flat charge. They say that they are powerless to revoke the licence at the club without the agreement of police.
But the police say they cannot raise any concerns until there is a rise in disorder as a result of the promotion.
Action
Despite this a Manchester council source claimed similar offers would not be tolerated in the city.
He said: "If an offer like this was put on at a club in Manchester we would soon be made aware of it. We'd then send in environmental health officers with the help of the police.
"If they spot one of a number of things, such as the club serving anyone who appears to be drunk, we could and would take action. We also have a good relationship with our licensees - and you should never underestimate the powers of persuasion."
An emergency summit between brewery bosses and council officials is to be held in Oldham in a bid to halt a price war being blamed for the promotion.
Swig
John Johnson, from Tokyo's, said that similar offers at rival clubs in the town forced the club to introduce the deal.
Each Friday in January revellers pay £5.99 at the Roscoe Street club, which opens at 11pm. They can then swig as many drinks as they like until the club closes at 3am.
Mr Johnson was set to meet licensing bosses today and said he was willing to drop the promotion if competitors promised to follow suit. But he said there were `no plans' to scrap the offer for its final night this Friday.
At Livingstones, on Fairbottom Street, a similar all you can drink promotion for £10 is on offer on Fridays and Saturdays. And at Liquid, on Waterloo Street, selected drinks are 90p on Fridays.
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So, in a nutshell someone has to get their head smashed in by some moron who cant handle their beer before something is done. Is prevention not better than cure?
glad to hear it!
if it was stopped then welcome to the dictatorship they call britain!
this is free enterprise! stopping it will just send up back into the dark ages!
there used to be a club over in huddersfield that had a promotion like this on every week all year! they didnt used to complain about that!
In their face
Jay B, on this one, I think you are spot on.
What annoys me most in the article is:
"An emergency summit between brewery bosses and council officials is to be held in Oldham in a bid to halt a price war being blamed for the promotion. ... Mr Johnson was set to meet licensing bosses today and said he was willing to drop the promotion if competitors promised to follow suit."
That's a price fixing cartel and is illegal. The supermarkets were prosecuted for colluding to fix the price of milk; the same principle should apply here.
Let's be honest, what is being proposed is that the council and the licencees get together to work out a way to fix the market and rip off the customer.
Of course nobody who works for the M.E.N would ever take advantage of any "cheap booze" offers would they??
But when the northern oiks, plebs & uncouth lower classes do - well it's just so "vulgar & disgusting" isn't it M.E.N??
If people don't like it and are scared it might kick off then heres a thought... don't go! As for the serving people who are obviously drunk law... I have never, ever, seen that enforced, and I've been drunk in clubs a lot, why just enforce it when drinks are cheap?
Alcohol abuse is slowly destroying British Society. All these posts going on about freedom and price fixing, are missing the point; this is just another twist in the downward spiral of alcohol addiction and abuse which the majority of people wish to ignore. Why? because the majority use alcohol and will not face the truth. Many, many decent law adiding people have a real alcohol problem, but won't face the truth.
"Alcohol abuse is slowly destroying British Society"
Drinking has always been a part of British society. Alcohol hasn't appeared in the last couple of years.
What is destroying British Society is the erosion of freedom. I don't kid myself that there was ever a golden age of liberty in the UK, but every day, there is another area of our lives where the government decides that it knows best and has to make our decisions for us.
I like having a drink every so often. I might even drink more than the government's made-up "daily allowances." But, it's my money and my body and I'm not harming anybody else in the process, so anybody that doesn't like it can take a running jump.
Black Flag I agree with you about the "freedom" thing...I would change the first line of my post to..."Alcohol abuse and the erosion of freedom are slowly destroying British Society" How's that?
nyb, I'm not convinced that alcohol abuse is playing that much of a part. Alcohol has always been a part of British culture and I don't have the sense that people are drinking more than they used to. I get the feeling that, like crime, the profile of alcohol use is being raised, but the underlying figures aren't changing that much.
Tokyo has been getting quieter over the years, for that matter, so has Oldham. Look what has closed in the last 5 years, Candlelight, Budda Bar, Monty's, The Cabaret Club etc.
Didn't Satan's Hollow in Manchester once have a similar offer about 5 years ago, and despite licensing concerns, everything seemed well controlled.
Phil Taylor what about all the clubs that closed before those!
like Dreamers, zanes (butterflies really), henry afrika's and scruples! all those fell foul of changes in the market!
tricky thing freedom, everyone says they want it, but when they actually have some and it turns out not everyone wants to use their freedom th be like them the complaints soon start pouring in.
Oh, if only people could just enjoy a drink, behave with due regard to themselves and everyone else. The Police and other emergency services could get on with dealing with people who have much greater needs, businesses could make money and everyone could have a good time.
I'll wake up in a minute.