THE chairman of the Worcestershire Licensed Victuallers' Association has hit out at proposals that could see pub and club owners become liable for people who drink and drive.

In the Government's review of its road safety strategy published yesterday, drink driving has been highlighted as a major problem on Britain's roads.

As a result, a series of measures to combat the crime are to be proposed in a consultation paper later this year.

While Mike Stevens welcomes the idea of carrying out random breath tests on motorists, he is concerned about proposals to place a greater obligation on pub landlords, restaurant owners and service station operators not to allow their customers to drink and drive.

"That's very, very unfair," he said. "I don't see how they can enforce that really.

"It very difficult for licencees to know if a person is driving or not. Even if you asked them they're not going to tell you the truth are they? The government have looked at things like this in the past and it concerns me that they're looking at this now."

He said that if cases ever came to prosecution it would just become a war of words.

"There will a debate about what person said what," he said.

"No licencee should be put in that position really. I think licencees are responsible enough. I don't think they need laws putting on them."

He said he thought if the changes came into effect it would deter people from getting into or staying in the inidustry.

"If you take a licence you could gain a criminal record for something that's not your fault," he said.

"There might be a licencee somewhere - there's always a bad apple - but I cannot believe that they would encourage people to drink and drive, there's no evidence of that at all.

"Resources would be much better spent on educating people not to drink and drive."