Interior Ministry outlaws drinking in Ústí nad Labem’s public spaces

The Czech Interior Ministry has approved a proposal put forward by the North Bohemian town of Ústí nad Labem to outlaw drinking in the municipality’s public spaces. According to Saturday’s edition of Lidové noviny, the decision could act as an important precedent, leading to the prohibition of alcohol consumption in public spaces elsewhere in the Czech Republic. Other towns have greeted the Interior Ministry’s decision, and say that they will now put forward similar proposals. Prague Town Hall says it is considering trying to implement such a drinking-ban as a means of countering what it calls the problem of drunks and homeless people in the city’s parks and stations. Hradec Kralové is also working on the drafting of such legislation.