DODGY doormen will be bounced out of Bury pubs and clubs under tough new rules. Licensing chiefs are determined that bogus security men won't give drugs and crime a free ride in local drinking houses.

Bury has signed up to a county-wide Door Safe scheme which requires proper training and registration from staff. All doormen will have to join the scheme, and disclose any previous convictions at a special police interview.

Coun Trevor Holt, licensing chairman, described the move as sensible.

"Other local authorities, like Manchester and Salford, have had some bad problems," he said, "with clubs being infiltrated with drugs and some doormen being involved in that.

"There are no major problems in Bury that have prompted us to do this, we're just following the trend," he added. Several other councils in Greater Manchester already operate the scheme.

Landlords and club owners will pay £40 to register doormen, with £30 of that going towards a training course at Manchester College of Arts and Technology.

There doormen will be instructed in the law, first aid and crowd control, and even on how to deal with bomb alerts.

Applications will be vetted by an independent Door Safe committee, comprising mostly people in the leisure trade.

The council's licensing committee would handle appeals and decide whether to strike doormen off the register.

Provisional and short-notice registration may be granted in some circumstances.

After "graduation", doormen will have to wear an identification badge while on duty and licensees obliged to keep a strict log of hours worked and personal details of staff.

"There's no need for people to be worried and assume that we think there's a serious problem," added Coun Holt.

"It's just a good sensible move, and one that is welcomed by licensees and club owners as well as the police."

The Door Safe scheme is due to start early next year.

Chief Inspector David Morris of Bury police gave his backing to the scheme.

"From a community safety perspective, we are keen that both licencees and the people going to the clubs are properly protected and safe," he said. "One way to do that is having properly trained and registered door staff, who can be of great help before we arrive."

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