Cheap drink promotions and late-night drinking are encouraging too many young people to drink themselves into oblivion, a chief constable said yesterday.

Sir Norman Bettison, the head of West Yorkshire Police, called on the drinks industry and supermarkets to pay towards the health and policing costs caused by excessive drinking on the principle of the “polluter pays”.

His criticism of cut-price drinks and promotions came as an opinion poll conducted on behalf of the British Beer and Pub Association found that 78 per cent of people said that they drank about the same amount of alcohol as they did before the licensing laws were changed to allow for extended opening hours.

The YouGov poll conducted on line among 1,841 people betweeen November 16 and 19 also found that more than three quarters of those questioned did not want to see a return to fixed closing times.

Sir Norman was speaking just after the second anniversary of the relaxation of the licensing laws, which allowed pubs to apply for round-the-clock drinking licences.

He demanded an end to pubs and clubs offering cheap drink promotions such as buy two glasses of wine and get the rest of the bottle free.“No irresponsible promotions please, no two for-the-price-of-one,” he said.

The chief constable spent a night on patrol in Leeds recently to get a first-hand view of the situation confronting police. He said: “Some young people are drinking themselves into oblivion, often using a cocktail of drink and drugs to get themselves into an almost unconscious state. What is happening raises a host of health, societal and policing issues.

“The polluters, as in other aspects of society, should pay for the consequences of their business.

“Late-night establishments are exploiting people’s desire to drink to the state of oblivion . . . they ought to be paying for the consequences of that.”

The cost of policing Leeds city centre on a Saturday night is estimated to be more than £30,000.

Sir Norman’s attack comes amid signs of nervousness within the drinks industry over a review announced by the Government into the effects of allowing pubs and clubs to have extended opening hours.

However, Rob Hayward, chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association, said: “Taking out the pressure and pinch points associated with restricted hours and fixed closing times is resulting in people feeling under less pressure on their nights out. People are embracing the change and there is clearly no support for a return to the past and fixed closing times.”

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