Police have called time on late-night drinking in one of the UK's booming party areas.

But moves by Northumbria Police to curb after-midnight drinking on Newcastle's quayside look likely to be blocked by city councillors.

Police are opposing a wave of applications from bars and clubs in the area, which is a magnet to party-goers from all over Britain.

But Newcastle City Council says venues are right to "protect their commercial interests" by staying open later.

Drinking hours

A Newcastle MP has already called for a halt to multi-million pound developments in the city's quayside area.

Newcastle Labour MP Jim Cousins has criticised the developments as creating "too much booze and not enough buzz".

Only a few bars and clubs have late licences at the moment.

But city councillors are to consider late licence applications from three more, the Pitcher & Piano, Pravda and The Quayside, on Monday.

Council officials say other bids for special hours certificates to extend drinking hours are likely to follow.

But a spokesman for Northumbria Police said: "Any increase in the terminal hour for premises in the quayside would cause policing problems."

'Saturation point'

He said the force was concerned that late night drinking would "increase the likelihood of disorder".

The quayside has seen a boom in apartment complexes and the Northumbria force says the number of pubs and clubs has already reached saturation point.

But a spokesman for Newcastle City Council said the authority had to look at the overall picture.

He said: "These applications may well prove to be the forerunners to subsequent applications which could be made in respect of many other licensed premises in the quayside area.

"Other businesses will also seek to protect their commercial position to trade later at night. Such a pattern has evolved in other city centre areas.

"It has been argued that without such businesses the economic viability of many of the schemes would have been compromised."