Even worse is the government's cynical crony-favouritist policy in introducing "zoning", where certain venues will not have to abide by early-closing rules. One area in particular, Rachada, has been granted special licenses and is known to be run by "the favoured".

Sukhumvit is a vibrant, exciting, well-established entertainment area, catering for foreigners who like to spend their hard-earned foreign currency here. They want to enjoy themselves in a secure, police-controlled area; they know where most venues are located and ensure, without being intrusive, that the rules and regulations regarding their behaviour are most often obeyed; and they are aware that customers and staff in Sukhumvit are largely drug-free, which cannot be said of at least one other "licensed zone".

There are tens of thousands of Thai workers employed in our area, and venue owners have invested large sums of money in employing them. We survived the SARS crisis and the latest Gulf war, and kept our staff employed even though losses were made during that time due to the downturn in tourism. Now, with the bird flu epidemic and no obvious improvement in tourist numbers, the government sees fit to make thousands unemployed, which will also have a dramatic effect on villages around the country as staff able to keep their jobs will no longer receive sufficient income from salaries, commission and tips to send money home to support their families.

The effects of early closing on Sukhumvit Road will have the following consequences:

• unlicensed bars will operate in secret;
• tourists will be increasingly hounded for money;
• street drinking will increase;
• criminal activities such as stealing and pickpocketing will become commonplace;
• house and street parties will start up, upsetting local residents;
• street fighting will break out;
• diseases will multiply as there will be no requirement for medical checks.

Most other governments in the region that introduced draconian licensing laws in the past have seen the error of their ways and these days (witness Singapore) have far more liberal and progressive methods of dealing with problems arising from late-night drinking than appears now to be the case in Thailand.

The impact of this legislation may take a while to filter through, but in the end tourists will begin to spend their holidays elsewhere. This will have a an unprecedented effect on the airlines, hotels, restaurants, shops, taxi drivers and, most of all us, the entertainment industry. In fact, every sector throughout the country will begin to feel the effects of this sooner rather than later. And tourists that do bother to return here will find that prices have escalated, having a further detrimental effect on the country.

Mr Thaksin's government and the TAT are to be applauded for their efforts in expanding the tourist industry, yet they now insist on losing these gains by excluding many visitors who were once happy to book their holidays here.

To finalise, Sukhumvit Road Entertainment pledge, if the new licensing law is revoked, to:

• uphold the law;
• allow no one under the age of 20 years old into their venues;
• maintain vigilance on "drug-free" operations;
• maintain their high standards of cleanliness;
• ensure full records and IDs of workers are kept on our premises.