Successful street drinking ban to be extended by Wakefield Council

Legislation allowing street drinkers in Wakefield to be fined £100 has been extended, and Pontefract and Castleford look set to follow.
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A three-year public space protection order (PSPO) was brought in for the city centre in 2017 to curb anti-social behaviour related to drinking and police say the crackdown has worked.

The issue was meant to be discussed at a council cabinet meeting on Tuesday morning, but that was cancelled after the Prime Minister effectively put the country into lockdown and banned public gatherings of more than two people.

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Instead, senior councillors went through business on a virtual conference call and approved a report suggesting the ban be extended for another three years.

Banned: The threat of fines is working, police say.Banned: The threat of fines is working, police say.
Banned: The threat of fines is working, police say.

Similar PSPOs in Pontefract and Castleford remain in force and are likely to be reviewed, and possibly extended, later on this year.

Plans for a £2m refurbishment of Ossett Town Hall were also passed by the council, and the details of the government’s devolution deal for West Yorkshire, announced in the Budget a fortnight ago, were also accepted.