Shop’s Birmingham Pride alcohol plan in limbo

Police are concerned an application from a shop to serve alcohol 24 hours per day during Birmingham Pride would lead to drinking “around the clock”.

Management at Turkish Convenience Food Store, Smallbrook Queensway, has applied for permission to open from 4am until 7.59am from September 25 to 27 and serve alcohol.

The timing of the shop’s temporary event notice (TEN) runs at the same time as the Birmingham Pride festival due to be held over that weekend.

A Birmingham City Council licensing sub-committee on 24 August heard objections from West Midlands Police to the plan – including that drunk people could be able to buy alcohol.

PC Ben Reader said during the hearing: “This essentially gives that location a 24-hour licence during the Pride event.

“It’s on Smallbrook Queensway and is next to a takeaway and also next to a Turkish restaurant.

“Outside of the premises are a number of steps leading to Smallbrook Queensway […] and those steps are a bit of a gathering point, a bit of a focal point for people who have left the night-time economy who may then go to get some late night refreshment from the takeaway or restaurant and then sit on those steps.

“What this is seeking to do is extend the hours of alcohol sale until 8am when the licence then is re-enacted for the following day’s trading.

“So our concern is that people are going to be gathering at this location and have got ready access to alcohol and will be able to continue drinking around the clock essentially.”

He said staff were looking to “maximise revenue by selling additional alcohol” on the “very, very busy weekend”.

PC Reader added: “By having this additional availability of alcohol – I think this is purely to target people who may be leaving Pride and going into the city centre […].

“We don’t want these people to become so intoxicated that they could become victims of crime.”

No one from the shop was present at the hearing.

The committee will give their decision within five working days.