The Lancashire town of Oldham could become the first in the UK to introduce a minimum price for alcohol.

Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council (OMBC) has introduced a series of new conditions on 22 town centre pubs and bars as part of efforts to curb anti-social behaviour and alcohol-related violence.

In a letter to the licensed premises, the council states that if a bar wishes to offer customers "happy hour" or 2-4-1 type offers, it must radically change the way it operates.

OMBC has set the minimum price of one unit of alcohol at 75p, meaning that a pint of strong beer would cost no less than £1.90. Any premises selling drinks for less than that, even for a limited time, will have to commit to a number of new measures introduced by the council - or face the threat of having its license revoked.

The new measures include post office-style queueing systems to ease pressure on bar staff, a limit of two drinks per order, an increase in security staff to supervise the bar queues and two extra police officers - paid for by the licensee - to be on patrol in the town centre in order to prevent alcohol-related crime.

Pubs and clubs which agree to the minimum price of 75p per unit would be allowed to continue operating as normal.

According to OMBC, the new measures are needed to crack down on a "worrying trend" that has seen alcohol-related violence and crime increase rapidly in the town centre.

Tony Allen, OMBC's licensing officer, said: "The price of alcohol has become so cheap that it is attracting people who do not have a lot of money to spend.

"That type of clientele has been attracted to the town and that, we think, led to more violence and more issues concerning over-consumption."

The council's measures are featured in a BBC Panorama documentary later tonight (10 August 2009), in which bar operators offer a mixed response to the legislation.

One, Martin Diaper, who runs Bar 62 in the town centre, admits that something had to be done to curb "stupid" drink offers. Another licensee, Jane Ganley, owner of the Vogue bar, however tells the programme that if implemented, the new measures would cause more problems inside the bars.