Polycarbonates with unit labels hit pubs

Pubs and bars in Blackpool are being encouraged to use polycarbonate pint and wine glasses that display the number of alcohol units customers are drinking.

More than 20,000 of the branded polycarbonates are being sent to premises across the city for free.

However the council, police and health authorities have insisted using the glasses is "voluntary" for licensees.

The measures are part of Blackpool's ALTN8 scheme, aiming to "reduce alcohol consumption in individuals and reduce alcohol consumption overall".

The term ALTN8 - which also appears on the glasses - is aiming to encourage drinkers to think about having a soft drink, or water, between alcoholic beverages.

Chris Lewis, Blackpool Council's alcohol and tobacco officer, said: "We do not necessarily want all standard glasses to be swapped for these branded ones. If someone is in a round and there is one of these polycarbonates, it might spark a debate in the group. It's about provoking thoughts about how much people drink."

Lewis insisted that every pub he had been to wanted the polycarbonates. "People are thinking about the safety aspect," he said.

Pint glasses for standard strength lagers are being provided with a "2" on the side, to show the units, while for stronger lagers glasses displaying a "3" are available.

For 175ml wine glasses a "2.1" is shown and for 250ml glasses a "3" is displayed.

Steve Morton, NHS Blackpool's alcohol harm reduction policy officer said there were fears about the trade's reaction to the scheme, but he was "surprised" about how well it had been received. "We are trying to work with the trade," he said.

John Farrell, chairman of Blackpool Pubwatch, who has just taken delivery of the glasses, said he was "a bit worried" about how his customers would respond.

"The message is very prominent and jumps in your face," he said. "But I'm willing to give them a go."