GWENT'S top police officer today said his resources would be completely overstretched if 24-hour drinking is introduced.

Chief Constable Mike Tonge said if all-day drinking took off in Gwent he would not have enough officers to police the streets during the day.

He fears 24-hour drinking, which is set for the go-ahead from February, will become unmanageable.

Mr Tonge said: "If licensing hours get stretched, if there are several 'kicking out' times across Gwent, disruption becomes less predictable and spread out over all hours of the week.

"Then you'd see the force in Gwent stretched thinner and thinner.

"I would need more officers out in the small hours every night, leaving fewer of them available to police other situations during the day."

He also said Britain as a nation should be tackling the problem of binge drinking by encouraging brewers and those selling alcohol to be more responsible.

Meanwile, the Tories say Tony Blair's shake-up of drinking laws is in "chaos", after leaked memos revealed government splits over the policy.

David Blunkett voiced concerns over the end of last orders in a letter to the prime minister while home secretary.

Allowing pubs and bars to open through the night is a "leap in the dark" that risks "worsening the situation" of violent crime, he said.

Senior Home Office civil servants shared his reservations, documents leaked to a Sunday newspaper show.

But Mr Blair and Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell overruled them, insisting staggered opening times would cut violence.