Airports have criticised proposals that could stop them serving alcohol to travellers in the early morning.
The UK government will decide whether a ban on alcohol sales in airports before 10am will go ahead.
Currently, airports are exempt from the Licensing Act 2003 allowing airside bars and pubs to serve alcohol around the clock.
The Home Office is due to launch a consultation on extending the Licensing Act after a House of Lords select committee recommended that the airport exemption be removed.
Ryanair is a strong advocate of the ban, often experiencing drunk and disruptive passengers on its flights.
Earlier in the year, Ryanair spokesman Robin Kiely said: “We are calling for significant changes to prohibit the sale of alcohol at airports, such as a two-drink limit per passenger and no alcohol sales before 10am.
“It’s incumbent on the airports to introduce these preventative measures to curb excessive drinking and the problems it creates, rather than allowing passengers to drink to excess before their flights.”
Critics of the proposal argue that if people can’t drink before a certain time in the airport, they are simply going to drink on the aircraft.
In addition, the ban will hit sales of premium whisky as US tourists returning home on early morning flights would be prevented from buying gifts or souvenirs.
A report published this week claims that six in ten UK travellers have encountered drunk passengers and that there has been a sharp rise in passenger incidents on planes over the last six years.
[adblockingdetector id="638efa67113bf"]