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A new mandatory code for “responsible alcohol sales” has been outlined by home secretary Jacqui Smith.
In a debate on the Queen’s speech, Smith announced new measures to tackle binge drinking.
She pledged to give police more power to tackle crimes committed because of excessive drinking.
Smith claimed that while most people knew how to enjoy alcohol responsibly, there was a minority "who run out of control and ruin it for others".
"We will take tougher action against retailers and bars that sell alcohol to children and ensure the industry plays its part in ending irresponsible promotions, such as 'all you can drink' offers," she told the Commons.
Under the legislative agenda unveiled yesterday, the Policing and Crime Bill will contain measures on this new code of conduct.
The Bill also intends to introduce tighter guidelines on lap dancing clubs.
But shadow home secretary Dominic Grieve stated that the introduction of 24-hour licensing was a "mistake".
He called on the home secretary to say if there would be greater local control over licensing.
Smith replied that the mandatory code would allow "specific conditions, which would relate to all licensed establishments and also include... probably a larger number of provisions, which could be applied at a local level."
Keith Vaz, Labour chairman of the home affairs select committee, criticised supermarkets for continuing to sell alcohol “too cheaply”. He urged the government to introduce a “floor price” to end this practice.
But Smith explained that in the current economic climate, the government must carefully tackle alcohol problems while not impacting “disproportionately” on others.
She also expanded on the measure in the Queen’s Speech to tighten controls on lap-dancing clubs by giving local people more say on their operation.
The provisions in the Bill will mainly impact on new establishments, but there will also be "reasonably regular reviews of licences of clubs already in existence".
The home secretary explained that the government planned to make the biggest reform of the immigration system “in a generation”.
The Border, Immigration and Citizenship Bill will to give border agency officers the "integrated immigration and customs powers they need to deliver even greater protections at our borders”, Smith said.
The Bill sets out plans for major alterations for what is expected from migrants before they earn the “privilege” of British citizenship, Smith explained.
She added: "There will no longer be an automatic right to stay here after five years. From now on newcomers will have to speak English, work hard and play by the rules if they want to stay and build a new life in Britain."
But shadow home secretary Dominic Grieve argued that aspirations in the Queen’s Speech were “at variance” with the government’s record on justice.
Grieve claimed that the government has presided over a “virtual” doubling of violent crime since it was elected, adding that “incessant red tape and regulation has tied the hands of the police”.
"Indeed some of the announcements that have now been made on this subject are merely rolling back the red tape and bureaucracy that the government had previously introduced," he added.
Grieve also said that the government's "open door policy on immigration" had led to a fivefold increase in immigration.
Dods Parliamentary Communications Ltd