Police officers could have to be removed from Oxford's streets in the daytime to provide enough cover at night.

The warning came from Pc Bill Denver, Oxford's police licensing officer, during an application for an entertainment licence for an Australian theme bar.

During the 28 days prior to last weekend, there were 37 assaults in Oxford city centre among late-night revellers, Pc Denver told the Public Entertainment Licensing committee yesterday.

"Three of those attacks were more serious, amounting to GBH or causing actual bodily harm," he said.

Nearly all those assaults occurred "significantly" close to clubs and pubs, between 11pm and 3am.

In spot checks on three consecutive Saturdays, the police had "crucially" found that all night entertainment spots visited were operating with 75 per cent more customers in the last hour of trading than they were licensed for.

Pc Denver warned: "We are reaching a critical situation when we could have to reduce the number of police during the day to cope with public disorder problems at night." The licensing committee was hearing an application from Regent Inns for a Walkabout bar and restaurant on the corner of George Street and Worcester Street.

Such is the crisis over policing that after the licensing hearing the police had a meeting at Oxford Town Hall with leaders of the city council to agree a united strategy to restrain the growth of night clubs.

"In many towns and cities there's an agreed saturation level," Pc Denver explained.

The committee granted a provisional public entertainment licence for the bar.

Conditions stipulate that the Walkabout must close at 11pm on Sunday to Wednesday, at midnight on Thursday, and 1am on Friday and Saturday.

David Clifton, representing the applicants, told the committee that during the day the Walkabout would be a coffee bar, "with an emphasis on screening sport". In the evening the tempo will change pace as the bar becomes a club.

Commenting after the meeting, Mr Clifton said: "The outcome is exactly what we expected."