A VILLAGE'S gala has been barred from selling alcohol, despite people being able to buy booze from a nearby shop and drink it there on the day.

East Linton Gala chiefs had hoped to have a drinks tent at this summer’s gathering, which they said would help raise funds for the community.

However, a meeting of East Lothian Council's licensing board today refused to grant a licence after ruling that the gala was a "predominantly children’s event" and it would be against council policy.

The board meeting heard that the gala, which is attended by about 400 local residents, was described as the county’s "smallest" one and that it was held in the village’s War Memorial Park.

Cat McMeeken, representing the gala committee, argued that the park was exempt from a county-wide public drinking ban on the day of the gala so people could bring their own alcohol to the celebration.

She said that allowing the gala to run its own drinks tent discouraged people from buying alcohol elsewhere, as they knew that funds raised from the tent went to the community.

She told the board: “East Linton Gala has never had a situation where there has been anti-social behaviour.

"It is not an area where people will be buying drink from shops because it is cheaper, they will be going to the tent. It is predominately an affluent area.”

Ms McMeeken questioned the board’s policy, which says that events which are classed as predominately for children should not necessarily need alcohol licences and puts the onus on the applicant to justify why there should be drink sold.

And she pointed to the decision earlier in the board meeting to approve a drinks licence for the Edinburgh Marathon, which she argued was also a family event.

READ MORE: Bars given permission to sell beer at Edinburgh Marathon 2024 finish

She said: “It is interesting that this is a large-scale event which will bring money into the area, whereas East Linton Gala will not.”

However, after a short adjournment, the board members returned to refuse the licence, dismissing the argument that the gala was not a children’s event but for the entire community.

Councillor Lachlan Bruce, board chairperson, said that the main reason, he understood, for the drinks tent was to raise funds for the community, adding: “I do not think that is a good enough reason.”

And he hit back at the suggestion that the marathon and gala were similar.

He said: “The marathon is not predominately a children’s event, participants have to be over 18. It is predominately about runners.”