A crackdown on binge drinking in Oxford city centre will target premises that promote cheap drinks.

Pubs and clubs will be asked to sign a voluntary code which aims to put an end to cheap drink promotions, increasingly regarded as a major factor in the anti-social behaviour and violence which blights the city at weekends.

Oxford City Council has also warned that premises which decline to sign up could pay a heavy price when their licences come up for renewal.

The council's licensing committee is increasingly alarmed at the growth of offers such as 10 pints for a tenner, £5 jugs of cocktails and two-for-one deals. It says the deals "encourage excessive and irresponsible drinking". The voluntary code is one of a series of new measures designed to make the city centre safe at night, amid claims that George Street is fast becoming a 'no go area' for many people.

The committee has called on police to support a 'special saturation policy' to make licences difficult to obtain in areas packed with bars. It will also act against premises which cram in customers and seek a late night 'plastic glasses only' rule in large city bars.

Ed Turner, the council's licensing committee chairman, said: "We have a duty to try to ensure that people who come to enjoy the city's nightlife have a safe and comfortable atmosphere."

The cheap drinks code will be drawn up by OxSafe -- made up of police, emergency services, city council and licensed premises' represen- tatives.

The city council will take over new licensing powers from magistrates in the New Year. Mr Turner said that at present the council could raise objections when licences come up for renewal, but after February the council will have the power to close offending premises. Award-winning cocktail bar owner Matthew Davies, of Raoul's, in Walton Street, said: "A voluntary ban on all promotions would give us the chance to discover if this will help clean up Oxford before the situation gets any worse."

Luminar, which runs the Park End Club, is already adopting a code on drinks promotions. Mitchells and Butler, which owns O'Neill's and the Goose at Gloucester Green, say they are also about to announce the end of many drink promotions.