Bar for Urdd Eisteddfod; Concerned church leaders fear drunken behaviour at national children's festival.

Byline: ERYL CRUMP

ALCOHOL will be on sale at one of Europe's largest youth festivals next summer.

Urdd Gobaith Cymru's council, meeting at Aberystwyth on Saturday, decided not to overturn an earlier decision to apply for a drinks licence on the Maes of next year's Urdd National Eisteddfod at Llanerchaeron in Ceredigion.

Church leaders, who called on the Urdd to reconsider, fear a bar will lead to drunken behaviour.

After the meeting Urdd chair Carol Davies said: "A decision was taken to accept the recommendations on the arrangements to serve alcohol with food at the Urdd National Eisteddfod.

"The recommendations are part of wider proposals to expand and improve catering provision on the Maes. The proposals will be implemented at this year's Urdd National Eisteddfod, Ceredigion 2010 and assessed afterwards." The decision was met with disapproval from church groups who had called on the Urdd to reverse its decision.

The North Wales Association of the Presbyterian Church of Wales voiced its "disappointment and concern" at the controversial move.

The association, which represents chapels in the North and mid Wales, will now urge Ceredigion County Council members not to grant the Urdd a licence if an application is made to that authority.

The Association's moderator, Rev Megan Williams, said: "The attempt to make alcohol respectable is absurd. It is, after all, a drug, and over-imbibing alcohol has its dangers.

"We must also bear in mind that the Urdd is an organisation for children and young people. Over the years we as Welsh people have been very supportive of the Urdd, but I fear it will lose the goodwill of many people if it goes ahead with the plan to bring alcohol on to the Eisteddfod field."