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    The 2003 Licensing Act's impact on crime and disorder: an evaluation

    Hough, Mike and Hunter, G. (2008) The 2003 Licensing Act's impact on crime and disorder: an evaluation. Criminology & Criminal Justice 8 (3), pp. 239-260. ISSN 1748-8958.

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    Abstract

    The Licensing Act 2003, coming into force in November 2005 in England and Wales, abolished set licensing hours for pubs and clubs. The aim was to liberalize a rigid system while reducing the problems of drinking and disorder associated with a standard closing time. This article summarizes the results of an evaluation funded by the Home Office. Despite widespread concern that the legislation would lead to `24-hour drinking' and an increase in associated problems, the experience of the first year shows very little change. The scale of change in licensing hours was variable but modest: while the majority of pubs extended their hours, most of these extensions were short. Thus the average national increase in opening hours was small. Alcohol consumption showed a slight fall. There was no obvious impact on violent crime and disorder, according to a range of measures, including crime statistics, victim surveys and medical statistics. These results are not particularly consistent with findings in other jurisdictions which have relaxed controls over opening hours of pubs and clubs.

    Metadata

    Item Type: Article
    Keyword(s) / Subject(s): alcohol-related crime, binge drinking, disorder, licensing, violence
    School: Birkbeck Faculties and Schools > Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences > School of Social Sciences
    Research Centres and Institutes: Crime & Justice Policy Research, Institute for
    Depositing User: Administrator
    Date Deposited: 19 Jul 2011 13:59
    Last Modified: 02 Aug 2023 16:55
    URI: https://eprints.bbk.ac.uk/id/eprint/3813

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