The Alcohol licensing laws of the United Kingdom regulate the sale and consumption of alcohol, with separate legislation for England and Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland being passed, as necessary, by the UK parliament, the Northern Ireland Assembly, and the Scottish Parliament respectively.
Throughout the United Kingdom, the sale of alcohol is restricted—pubs, restaurants, shops and other premises must be licensed by the local authority. The individual responsible for the premises is known as the Designated Premises Supervisor or DPS for short and must also hold a personal licence, also issued by the local authority. Premises licences, in as far as they concern the sale of alcohol, can be categorized to include on-licences (allowing consumption of alcohol on the premises) and off-licences (alcohol must be removed from the vendor's premises and drunk elsewhere). However, these distinctions are not made in the Licensing Act 2003, and the position in Scotland and Northern Ireland is more complex. Many on-licensed premises also permit off-sales.
The age at which people are legally allowed to purchase alcohol is 18 in most circumstances. Adults purchasing alcohol on behalf of a person under 18 in a pub or from an off-licence are liable to prosecution along with the vendor.
The Licensing Act 2003 thoroughly revised and consolidated into one Act all the many separate legislative provisions that previously covered licensed premises in England and Wales. The Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 brought the same reforms to Scotland.
The same reforms have been proposed for Northern Ireland, but have not been enacted; sale of alcohol there remains more strictly regulated than in Great Britain.
Read more about Alcohol Licensing Laws Of The United Kingdom: History, On-licence, Off-licence, Licensing Law in Northern Ireland, Licensing Law in Scotland, Changes Since 2005, Concerns
Famous quotes containing the words alcohol, laws, united and/or kingdom:
“Some parents feel that if they introduce their children to alcohol gradually in the home environment, the children will learn to use alcohol in moderation. I’m not sure that’s such a good idea. First of all, alcohol is not healthy for the growing child. Second, introducing alcohol to a child suggests that you condone drinking—even to the point where you want to teach your child how to drink.”
—Lawrence Balter (20th century)
“There never seems to be any difficulty in stretching the laws and the constitution to fit any kind of a political deal, but when it is proposed to make some concession to women they loom up like an unscalable wall.”
—Susan B. Anthony (1820–1906)
“The House of Lords, architecturally, is a magnificent room, and the dignity, quiet, and repose of the scene made me unwillingly acknowledge that the Senate of the United States might possibly improve its manners. Perhaps in our desire for simplicity, absence of title, or badge of office we may have thrown over too much.”
—M. E. W. Sherwood (1826–1903)
“He is a strong man who can hold down his opinion. A man cannot utter two or three sentences, without disclosing to intelligent ears precisely where he stands in life and thought, namely, whether in the kingdom of the senses and the understanding, or, in that of ideas and imagination, in the realm of intuitions and duty.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)