Starmer set to allow all pubs to open for England’s 1am World Cup match with Mexico

Keir Starmer is poised to let all pubs stay open until the small hours of the morning for England’s crunch World Cup game on Monday.

The Three Lions take on Mexico in a clash due to start at 1am UK time, prompting calls for licensing laws to be relaxed in a move that could be worth millions to the hospitality industry.

Pubs have already been permitted to open later during England’s run in the knockout stages of the World Cup.

But Monday’s match at the Azteca falls outside of change, because its start time is too late.

Now, however, Sir Keir, a die hard Arsenal fan, is looking at options to allow a one-off lifting of restrictions.

Responding to the move, Lib Dem MP Max Wilkinson said: "See you in the pub."

He had called for a blanket extension for licensing hours, saying refusing to grant one would be “the worst decision since the introduction of hydration breaks”.

Official figures show 16.3 million people tuned in to watch England beat the Democratic Republic of Congo on Thursday.

England captain Harry Kane secured a spot in the round of 16 for the men’s national football team after scoring two second-half goals.

Emma McClarkin, chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association, said she had raised industry concerns.

She said: “We remain in close contact with government about concerns raised by publicans who want to show the match but haven’t got temporary event notices in place.

“It would be a crying shame for fans and pubs if our locals weren’t able to host such an important match.”

England manager Thomas Tuchel has also called for children to stay up late and watch the match.

Asked if the prime minister backs that call, Downing Street said “parents will make their own decision on that” but added “kids should be in school on Monday”.

Sir Keir’s spokeswoman said: “We want everyone to enjoy the game but kids should be in school on Monday.

“The PM has his usual packed schedule on Monday, so he’ll be facing the same dilemma as everyone else on whether to stay up.

“Win or lose, I think millions of England supporters will be at work on Monday, and the PM will be doing the same.”

Earlier education minister Baroness Jacqui Smith earlier said she planned to take a “disco nap” on Sunday afternoon and then stay up late to watch the match.

Licensing hours were extended from 11pm to 1am for World Cup matches with kick-offs from 5pm to 9pm.

Pubs can also stay open until 2am if the kick off is after 9pm and up to 10pm.

Outside of those rules, pubs can apply to their local council for what is called a Temporary Event Notice (TEN) to stay open late.

However, that must be submitted at least five working days beforehand, leaving it too late for pubs to apply.