Today Caroline Lucas has called upon Labour to end their hypocrisy regarding licensing regulations after a cafe on The North Laine was granted permission to extend its hours - without the knowledge of the resident living upstairs.

The café in question, was granted permission to extend its hours until 10pm under a fast track process that allows 'minor variations' to be pushed through quickly.

This gives residents just two weeks to make representations against the new license.

Caroline Lucas, who is tipped by pollsters to become the MP for Brighton Pavilion, said:

"It is wrong that this has been allowed to take place without residents being given a fair chance to make objections.

"Ward councillors were not made aware of the application, and all that was displayed to the public was an A4 sheet notifying them of the proposal.

"The immediately affected residents, who are the owners of the premises upstairs, have been away. They will come home without having even known about the changes, and without having been able to make representations.

"So much for giving residents a voice."

Caroline continued:

"Gordon Brown talks about making it easier for people to make representations and get their voices heard, when in fact their voices are not being heard at all. This is just another example of Labour hypocrisy.

"The myth of a European style of drinking has been used as an excuse to prioritise the needs of businesses over that of residents.

"The Green Party would ensure that residents always have a fair chance to make representations and have a real say in what decisions are made on their doorsteps - two weeks is simply not enough.

"I also think the Government should look at their wording - a cafe going from being open until the afternoon to being open until 10pm and serving alcohol does not seem very 'minor' to me."

For more information please call the Brighton and Hove Green Party office on 01273 766 670