South Lanarkshire Council to consider if ban on drinking in public is still necessary

Councillors will consider whether or not a ban on boozing in public is still necessary in South Lanarkshire.

Drinking alcohol in public places will remain prohibited across the region while a formal review of the rules takes place.

South Lanarkshire Council’s executive committee on May 20 is being asked to approve a statutory review of the byelaws which prevent drinking booze in public.

The byelaws, which first came into force in South Lanarkshire in March 2010 and were updated in April 2014, cover 33 towns and villages across the area including Hamilton, East Kilbride, Rutherglen, Cambuslang, Lanark, Larkhall, and Strathaven.

The review has been triggered by a legal requirement under the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, which obliges councils to review byelaws within ten years of them coming into force.

As the South Lanarkshire rules were last reviewed and confirmed by the Scottish Government in 2014, they are now overdue a fresh look.

A report on the matter, which is due to tabled at the council’s executive committee next Wednesday, reads: “The byelaws were introduced to reduce the nuisance and disorder that can be associated with public drinking.

“The South Lanarkshire byelaws prohibit the consumption of alcohol in certain designated public places with reference to specified areas and plans.

“The byelaws also make it an offence for a person to have in their possession an open container of alcohol in certain designated public places.

“Further guidance on such byelaws is also available from the Scottish Government. According to the Scottish Government, more than 480 towns and villages across Scotland, including Glasgow and Edinburgh, have such byelaws.”

Glasgow was among the first to introduce a blanket outdoor drinking ban, which officially came into force in 1996 following campaigns in the 1980s to tackle anti-social behaviour and so-called “lager louts” in the city centre.

Local authorities across Scotland were then given power to introduce such byelaws under national legislation.

The review will be led by the council’s legal services team, with input from the community engagement team. A wide range of bodies will be consulted, including Police Scotland, the Procurator Fiscal, NHS Lanarkshire, community councils, the council’s anti-social behaviour team, and elected members.

Members of the public will also have the opportunity to have their say. Consultees will be asked whether the byelaws remain necessary and appropriate, and whether any amendments are needed — including whether new housing developments or other changes since 2014 should be reflected in updated rules.

The results of the consultation will be reported back to the executive committee in September this year, when councillors will decide whether the byelaws should continue in their current form, be amended, or be revoked entirely.

Any changes would require Scottish Government confirmation before coming into effect.