COUNCILLORS will decide tomorrow on whether to fund a Kirklees-wide crackdown on sales of alcohol to under-age youngsters.
Kirklees Council’s Huddersfield North Area Committee will meet to decide whether to contribute to the £4,200 cost of running test purchasing operations over the next year.
The operations by West Yorkshire Police and Trading Standards involve children under 18 being sent into licensed premises and off-licences to see if they will be sold alcohol.
Test purchasing operations have been run in the area before, with funding from the area committee and help from the Home Office.
A database of willing young people has also been put together, recruited by behaviour improvement officers working in local schools.
This time, the plan is to target local pubs and clubs more heavily.
Insp David Glover, of Huddersfield South policing area, said: “There has been considerable success in dealing with under-age sales of alcohol by off-licences, but at a recent operation with Trading Standards targeting on-licences, all failed.
“More staff are required to carry out these operations in pubs and clubs, due to the increased dangers associated with a child entering a place where a number of drunken people may be present.”
He said more funding was needed to do this work. Around £182.61 from each area committee ward was required.
He said: “There are strict budgetary controls in place from mainstream funding and these are being used to fund conventional policing methods against anti-social behaviour and crime reduction.
“I make the request to all area committees so that we can perform these operations across the entire district and benefit all the communities that we serve.”
