Vue said they would not serve pints of beer but only 330ml bottles

VUE Cinema in the city centre has had its application for an alcohol licence refused by Cambridge City Council.

At a licensing meeting today councillors decided the cinema would not be able to serve alcohol, citing the cinema’s failure to prove it would not add to the alcohol-related problems already existing in the Grafton centre area.

The Grafton is in a cumulative impact zone which means new, or changes to current licences will only be agreed if they do not affect the area as a whole.

At the meeting, representatives from Cambridgeshire police said the area was already prone to alcohol-related violence and anti-social behaviour.

Marcia Nichols, a licensing inspector for the police, said: “We are in a cumulative impact area. It has its own unique problems of alcohol-related violence and anti-social behaviour.

“We still believe that by introducing alcohol into a family destination which at the moment is a relatively safe place to test their social skills without their parents has a a risk of harm to them.”

Vue Cinema’s director of operations Kam Dosanjh said the cinema would not attract any sort of problems.

Full story to follow.