Plans to extend World Cup pub opening hours blocked

Pub licensing hours will not be extended during England's opening World Cup match, the Home Office has confirmed.

The news comes in spite of requests by the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) for serving times to be extended on two weekends during the tournament in Brazil this summer.

England will play Italy at 11pm on Saturday 14 June 2014, and the BBPA had hoped that pubs would be able to stay open from 11pm until 1am on that Friday and Saturday - the opening weekend of the competition.

It also asked for an extra two hours on the closing weekend, 11 and 12 July.

But the Home Office said the World Cup was not a "one-off" event like the Queen's Jubilee.

Crime prevention minister Norman Baker said: "It is our normal practice to only extend licensing hours under the Licensing Act 2003 in exceptional circumstances, usually for one-off events such as the Golden Jubilee rather than prolonged periods," he said.

"Premises which wish to open longer during this time can do so by applying for a Temporary Event Notice extension.

"This gives local authorities and police an opportunity to feed into the decision making process, allowing them to allocate resources if necessary."