By Nick Evans

PLANS to sell alcohol at a new petrol station in Milton Regis will be discussed by Swale Council’s licensing committee next week.
BP Connect has applied for a premises licence for the site of the new petrol station, on derelict land at the corner of St Paul’s Street and King Street. The idea is opposed by Kent Police and a nearby children’s nursery, while residents of adjoining flats have petitioned against the plan.
The police say they are not convinced the BP Connect shop, which will be set alongside a petrol forecourt, will not be primarily used as a garage, despite BP providing details of how it will trade as a convenience store.
If a licence was to be granted, the police would insist on a series of conditions being met to ensure underage people are not sold alcohol. In a letter to the council, Jacquelin Curtis, a director of Activeplay Nursery in the village high street, expresses fears there would be considerable nuisance to older people living in the vicinity.
She said: “A venue serving alcohol after regular closing hours will inevitably attract people who may have been drinking for some hours, with a resultant increase in litter, noise and antisocial behaviour.
“My own business is very close to the site and stands empty overnight, so it would be an obvious target for vandalism. The building was vandalised three times in quick succession last year, suffering broken windows and graffiti. We frequently have to move bottles, cans and snack food wrappers from the premises which have been littered overnight, and this could only worsen.
“If staff were to turn up in the morning to discover damage to the building, potentially we would be unable to open for business and would have to turn away parents without notice.”
BP Connect wants to sell alcohol at any time of day or night, seven days a week and sell late-night refreshment between 11pm and 5am.