A NEW Glasgow nightclub is to become the first in Scotland to fingerprint clubbers in a bid to keep out underage drinkers and troublemakers.

A NEW Glasgow nightclub is to become the first in Scotland to fingerprint clubbers in a bid to keep out underage drinkers and troublemakers.

The Sea and Crystal Lounge, which opens on September 7 at the site of the former Destiny club, is launching the hi-tech door-entry system with police backing.

Clubbers will be encouraged to sign up for free membership at the Cambridge Street venue.

They will give basic details including their name, mobile number and date of birth and will provide a fingerprint which will be stored as a series of numbers in the system, created by English firm UK Biometrics.

They will then simply place their finger on a special pad to get into the club each time they visit.

It means that anyone barred from the venue can be identified immediately if they try to get in. And it will also help stop under-18s entering.

General manager Scott Coogans said the £20,000 technology, which is already successfully used by owner Unique Leisure at its venues in Newcastle, had many advantages.

He said: "The main reason is it's one of the best ways of running a membership system. You no longer require cards to be carried.

"It's the best database system out there. If they have joined people will have had to produce the relevant ID.

"In the future when they come to the club they'll no longer have to carry ID because we will have already seen it."

Designers UK Biometrics says the club doesn't store people's actual fingerprints so there are no data protection issues.

Mr Coogans is especially keen to see his club equipped to meet future crackdowns by the police on underage drinking.

When new legislation comes into force later this year, police will be able to use youngsters to catch licensed traders selling alcohol to under-18s.

The move has been welcomed by police and the licensed trade.

A spokesman for the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland said: "We are supportive of efforts to bring the supply of alcohol to under-age drinkers under control."

Paul Waterson, chief executive of the Scottish Licenced Trade Association, said: "I think nightclubs should be applauded on this step."