The culture secretary has been forced to insist that pubs will not be open for 24 hours under new government legislation.

Tessa Jowell said on Sunday that she is opposed to round the clock drinking as Labour splits over changes to Britain's licensing laws threatened to spiral out of control.

The Cabinet minister made the move for unity after a rift between her department, which piloted the act set to come into force this year, and the Home Office widened following new revelations in the Sunday Times.

Leaked papers showed that former home secretary David Blunkett thought that the law was a "leap in the dark" and that he was overruled by Jowell and Tony Blair.

Blunkett feared that the planned liberalisation of the law would only fuel binge drinking and contribute to "worsening" crime and anti-social behaviour.

However culture minister Richard Caborn insisted in reply that the pledge was a "key manifesto commitment".

"There is increasing pressure on the department from the centre [Downing Street] to have transitional arrangements in place and completed by the middle of 2005," Caborn wrote, acknowledging Number 10's desire to attract young voters during the imminent general election campaign.

Earlier in the week several Labour backbenchers had begun to rebel on the law as press campaigns highlighted the increasing prevalence of binge drinking in their constituencies, prompting the Home Office to distance itself from the legislation and suggest that pubs and clubs should contribute to the extra costs of policing town centres.

Staggering

But Jowell said the media had misinterpreted the move towards staggered closing times, which had been recommended by the police.

"I would be opposed to 24-hour drinking, for goodness sake; pubs are not going to be open around the clock," she said.

"Flexible opening is being introduced in large part because over a period of years the police have said this will make a difference to the level of alcohol-related violence.

"The police said it would help them police the problems more easily.

"One of the things that fuels the increase in alcohol-related violence is people drinking up when they know they are close to closing time."

She added that the drinks industry could have to help fund extra policing.

"It is possible because we are looking at every option," she said.