Pubs and clubs could be forced to pay for drink-related crime, Sussex's top police officer has warned.

Chief Constable Ken Jones said the entertainment industry was in for a shock if it expected police to "mop up" alcohol-fuelled street crime on their own.

Venues profited from a thriving nightlife but dumped their problems on to the streets, he said.

But licensees reacted angrily to the allegations, saying they already paid steep business rates and more charges could force many independent venues to close.

Mr Jones made his comments in a report to the Sussex Police Authority.

Tackling drunken trouble-makers, he said, was a top priority and moves were underway to make pubs and clubs pay for the cost of policing in hotspot areas.

Mr Jones said: "We expect others to play their part. Among these is the entertainment industry, which, in pursuit of profits, exports its negative costs to our streets, police stations and hospitals."

A Commons Select Committee report this month said neither the Government nor media had exaggerated drink-related crimes.

The report urged local authorities to "robustly" exercise powers under the Licensing Act 2003 for the entertainment industry to contribute to policing costs.

The nuts and bolts of how they would pay and how much has still to be ironed-out.

Chris Steward, who runs the Concorde 2 nightclub in Madeira Drive and the Prince Albert pub in Trafalgar Street, Brighton, was furious about the plans.

He said: "It is a stupid idea and would be the final nail in the coffin for many of the pubs in this town. What on earth do we pay our business rates for?

"We pay huge amounts of money to the council and don't even get our bins emptied in return.

"We are also suffering massively from the enormous costs and horrendous amounts of paperwork now being imposed on us to get licences under the new council-run system.

"If they try to make us pay for police as well, many landlords will just throw up their arms and say 'what's the point?'"

Mr Steward, 54, said the blame for drink-fuelled crime lay with the large chain pubs and it would be grossly unfair to levy blanket charges for policing.

A more sensible idea would be to impose a minimum drinks price, he added.

Simon Woplin, operations manager for C-Side, which runs six clubs and 13 pubs in the city, said the idea was unworkable.

Mr Woplin, 32, who also helps run the Brighton and Hove Licensees' Association, said: "If we paid more, would we be serviced by the police quicker when there was trouble?

"Would we get priority over pubs who weren't paying the charges?

"Would we give funds based on the number of hours police spend at our venues?

"The power of the police force is based around a central Government core.

"If it starts being funded by other sources, it would lose that stability.

"This is just a quick-fix idea. In reality it wouldn't be practical."

David Joyce, 46, who manages the Creation nightclub in West Street, Brighton said co-operation was vital in tackling street crime.

He said: "I would be very willing to sit down with licensing officers and the police to talk about where and why there is trouble on the streets and how we could deal with that.

"But it is worth remembering we spend a lot on security already. We don't just dump people on the streets at 2am.

"Nightclubs get the blame because they are the last destination during a night but people have already drunk however many beers before they get here."

A spokesman for Brighton and Hove City Council said: "Discussions are taking place at national level about the possibility of getting pubs and clubs to contribute towards policing.

"We have no plans to take any steps in this direction unless, or until, national legislation changes."