ROWDY pubs and nightclubs in York will be given eight weeks to stamp out trouble - or face bills for policing or council clean-up costs.

Under new 24-hour licensing plans, the rules will apply to nightspots in designated Alcohol Disorder Zones - areas that are blighted by booze-fuelled violence.

But ministers have stopped short of introducing a compulsory "booze tax" on pubs and clubs.

Yobs who receive three on-the-spot fines or convictions linked to alcohol will be barred from pubs and bars for a fixed time under a new Drink Banning Order, one of a host of measures announced by the Government yesterday.

Children who attempt to buy alcohol will be given £80 on-the-spot fines, as will bars which serve drunks.

And police and trading standards officers will receive tough new powers to stop premises selling alcohol for 24 hours if they persistently sell alcohol to under-18s.

The costs of running the new licensing regime, which will be adopted by local authorities next month, are to be passed on to pubs and nightclubs rather than taxpayers by an increase in fees.

Large city centre pubs and nightclubs face a £1,905 one-off application fee and an annual license fee of £1,050.

Ordinary pubs will pay a one-off initial charge of between £100 and £635, followed by an annual charge of £70 to £350, depending on its rateable value. All pubs, regardless of size and location, currently pay ONLY £30 every three years to magistrates for a basic 11pm alcohol licence.

Peter Brownsword, general manager of Nexus and McMillans, said that the changes would have a greater impact on small nightspots rather than the big venues because the increased charge for a liquor licence is off-set by a significant reduction in the price of a public entertainments licence.

But he said the measures to curb binge drinking could foster a more responsible culture.

"I certainly believe that bars are to blame," he said. "For the larger bars it will be a deterrent. It is unrealistic to expect a change within eight weeks, but it is enough time to show that they are putting things in place and talking to the local authority."

Anita Adams, of the Golden Slipper, in Goodramgate, York, called the Government "arrogant and ignorant" and said licensees already took steps to ensure boozers did not over-indulge as serving a drunk had long been a prosecutable offence.

She said: "There are too many people meddling in an industry they do not understand. Most of us do a damn good job."

She said the increased charges would result in higher prices for drinkers.

"No licensee or businessperson in the country foots the bill for these sorts of things. It is always passed on."

Updated: 10:14 Saturday, January 22, 2005