LEGISLATION designed to curb the use of alcohol in Watchet and Minehead town centres has been scrapped, Somerset West and Taunton Council has decided.

Public Space Protection Orders (PSPOs) were introduced under the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014, to allow councils to tackle ‘nuisance or problem behaviour’.

PSPOs governing Minehead and Watchet town centres had been in effect for several years, but recently lapsed and now the district council has decided not to renew the orders.

Instead it will work with police to take ‘a more flexible approach to enforcement’ using other legislation.

The orders, which began in May 2017, allowed police and council offers to compel individuals to hand over any alcohol they possessed while in the town centre.

Cllr Chris Booth, portfolio holder for community, explained the reasons for not renewing the orders in a decision published on the council’s website.

He said: “This is a joint decision between the police and the council. This is supported within the police by the district commander, Superintendent Mike Prior, and the three neighbourhood beat sergeants covering these areas.

“The police operate on intelligence and community-based policing. They respond to incidents in the moment, of course, but they also gather intelligence on hotspots and work with the local community to understand need.

“They also have other powers which will amount to the same effect as the PSPOs were intended to have.”

Cllr Booth added: “PSPOs ban specific activities in specific locations. There is the possibility of issuing a fixed penalty notice, but the reality is that has not been the case.

“However, there are two things that can be and are being done to tackle this in a different way. The Young Persons (Confiscation of Alcohol) Act gives a police officer the power to remove alcohol from anyone under the age of 18 with an open container in the street, so that can be an effective route for under-18s.

“In order to target persistent adults, a community protection warning and a community protection notice can be issued. These are specifically designed to tackle undesirable behaviour of various types and are therefore not limited in the same way that a PSPO is.

“The police and the council feel that this is a more flexible approach to enforcement that will better serve our communities.”