A shop in Chatham is no longer able to sell alcohol after reports it was selling high strength cans to street drinkers.

Officers have seen an increase in crime and anti-social behaviour outside Euro Foods in the High Street since the beginning of last year.

They have also seen an increase in calls due to littering and intoxication outside the premises.

PC Clare Cossar, from the Community Safety Unit, said: "Officers are called to the area several times a day where, up until now, the shop was selling very cheap and very strong alcohol to its customers.

"Some of those customers were consuming the alcohol on the street and behaving inappropriately. In some incidents, the emergency services struggled to even communicate with those people who were heavily intoxicated.

"We work hard to reduce crime and disorder in the area and have worked collaboratively with Medway Council Public Health along with our specialist licencing officers to investigate the impact the shop’s sales were having on the public.

Flamingo News in Salisbury Road was ordered to stop selling alcohol in June last year after more than 180 bottles of wine, which had not had UK duty paid, were found inside.

The owners had launched an appeal which was due before magistrates later this month, but it has been dropped.

PC Cossar added: “We hope this provides the public with some reassurance that we are listening and we are doing everything that we can to cut crime.”