COUNCIL and police chiefs are hoping Burnley town centre will be a safer place thanks to legislation that kicked into force yesterday.

The initiative was officially launched at Chicago Rock, Hammerton Street, when police announced that the town centre is now an alcohol controlled zone.

Thanks to the Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001, police will now have the power to take action against anybody caught drinking in the town centre streets.

Anybody who fails to comply with the scheme could be arrested and fined up to £500.

The scheme already operates in other East Lancashire towns, including Blackburn, Hyndburn, Rossendale, and Clitheroe, which have been hailed successful.

Ian Stackhouse, of Burnley Town Centre Partnership, outlined the main aims

He said: "The Town Centre Management team and Burnley Against Nighttime Disorder can see many benefits to this. The number of bottles and glass in the streets which can be used as weapons will be reduced, minimising the opportunity for them to be used in this way.

"There will be less chance of people cutting themselves and causing personal injury on the streets.

"It will improve the environment by making streets cleaner. We don't want our streets littered with bottles and glass, which is particularly noticeable in the town on Saturday and Monday morning.

"People drinking in the streets can be intimidating, we want to eradicate that from the town centre.

"I have had some negative feedback from people saying the scheme makes Burnley look bad but, in fact, it does the opposite.

"It will act as a deterrent for people coming in and drinking on the streets, they may think twice about it."

Inspector Dave Croll, of Burnley Police, added: "A number of recent initiatives in the town centre have significantly impacted on crime and anti-social behaviour and, hopefully, the introduction of this legislation will further help to create a safer environment where people can enjoy the amenities that the town has to offer.

"Burnley has seen a major increase in the amount of investment into the nightlife industry.

"More people have been coming into Burnley during the past couple of years, but we haven't seen a vast increase in crime.

"This is due to the fact that we have successful CCTV and other schemes operating in the town that we will use together with this initiative."

Signs stating 'This is an Outdoor Alcohol Control Zone' will be erected to clearly identify the area where the legislation applies.