Brighton and Hove has lost its crown as the party capital of Britain because of a lack of parking, says an events organiser.

Revellers are fed up of getting parking tickets and are deserting the resort for the likes of Bournemouth and Bristol.

Alasdair Adam, director of Eclipse Leisure, which stages corporate parties and stag-nights, said the decline during the past few years had been rapid. He lays the blame squarely at Brighton and Hove City Council's parking policy.

He said: "People who come down and have their car ticketed don't want to come back. It's absolutely true.

"Brighton and Hove is getting its butt kicked by Bournemouth, Newquay and even Bristol, mainly because of the parking situation.

"We get requests from people who want to stay out of Brighton because parking is such a problem.

"We have been doing this for four years and Brighton used to be choc-a-bloc from June right through to the end of August.

"We had to send people to Bournemouth instead.

"But now it's the other way round. Bournemouth is full and there are lots of rooms available in Brighton, which gives an idea of how much trade it is missing."

Mr Adam, whose business is based in Bartholomews, Brighton, said the money re-couped through parking charges would be lost in the long-run through loss in tourism.

He said: "It doesn't affect us a huge amount because we can still send people to Bristol and Bournemouth. "But it's a shame because Brighton has such a lot to offer."

A council spokesman said he had not heard of people staying away because of a lack of parking.

He said: "We would be very surprised if that was the case. "The place is routinely packed with visitors of all sorts and is booming like never before.

"It is, however, tricky to balance the parking needs of visitors with the needs of residents but we're doing our best to get that right."