Asda bans late night booze sales
Asda's town centre stores will stop selling alcohol from midnight in a bid to cut down on late night disorder.
The supermarket giant also said it would rollout a Challenge-25 policy to 100 stores and may prosecute under-18s who attempt to buy alcohol.
The package of measures comes after Tesco said it would welcome Government legislation to stop the sale of cheap alcohol.
Asda said it did not believe legislation was the solution.
Its policy includes:• No alcohol sales in town centre stores between midninght and 6am from 7 April•Challenge-25 scheme in over 100 stores• Double amount of independent test purchases with results published online• Consider prosecuting under-18s who attempt to buy alcohol• Remove high alcohol fruit flavoured shooters from sale• Invest £1m in youth projects aimed at reducing underage drinking
"Our aim is to make it practically impossible for under 18s to break the law in our stores," said Asda chief executive and president Andy Bond.
"As a parent myself I find it unacceptable that children in the UK are still able to purchase alcohol from retailers and pubs.
"So from today we are adopting a zero-tolerance approach."
He added: "It will no longer be possible to purchase alcohol between midnight and 6 am in our town centre stores.
"Our aim is to make it harder for people who are already drunk to purchase more alcohol."
Pricing
However, Asda said it did not back Tesco's call for legislation to increase the price of alcohol.
"I am not in favour of indiscriminate price rises which would disproportionately hit the vast majority of people who drink sensibly and in moderation.
"Unlike some in the industry I am also not prepared to hide behind calls for more legislation.
"I believe there are plenty of things we can do now to start tackling this important social issue, which is why we are announcing these measures today."
