Police under-age drinking fear over Oswestry takeaway licence bid

Xou Ling You has applied to Shropshire Council for a premises licence for a Chinese takeaway, the Kwang Tung, in Beatrice Street, Oswestry.

However, the application is being challenged by both West Mercia Police and trading standards, who say that it could encourage under-age drinking.

Mr Ling You wants to be able to sell alcohol from 4pm until midnight from Wednesdays until Mondays.

Police chiefs said today that they would be objecting to the proposal when Shropshire Council's licensing sub-committee meets on Monday.

In a letter to the committee a spokesman for the force said: "This is a town centre location operating within a night-time economy area and hours.

"Due to the risk of additional crime and disorder the chief officer of police objects in relation to the alcohol sales.

"Alcohol off sales from a late-night refreshment premises, in this case, a Chinese takeaway, does not meet the two areas which he has considered – prevention of crime and disorder and protection of children from harm."

In the application, Mr Ling You has said that security guards would be employed at the premises.

However, the letter from West Mercia Police said: "There is no reference to customers who may enter the premises clearly already drunk and how they will be refused or the situation managed.

"The applicant has not considered staff training and how any record will be kept and monitored. The applicant has not considered coloured digital CCTV being installed at the premises, which is required by the chief officer of police."

The objection letter also said that the applicant had not considered how children would be prevented from harm, for instance whether it would employ a "challenge 25 policy", so that anyone who looks under 25 would be asked for identification.

A spokesman for Shropshire Council's trading standards department said: "The application fails to include any of the steps that we encourage traders to implement to prevent under-age sales.

"He has failed to detail even the basic steps necessary to prevent under-age sales, such as staff training. Based on this application I have no confidence that the application can prevent under-age sales and therefore would put children at risk."