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Chief Constable Adrian Lee says public money is being used irresponsibly
The idea of privately run "drunk tanks" to tackle alcohol-fuelled disorder has been backed by police chiefs.
They said drunk troublemakers should be put in cells to sober up and made to pay for their care the next morning.
The Association of Chief Police Officers, which is launching a campaign on alcohol harm to coincide with university freshers' season, said problem drinking was increasing.
The Police Federation said the plan was "neither a viable nor long-term" fix.
'Sticking plaster'Northamptonshire Chief Constable Adrian Lee, who leads on the issue of problem drinking for Acpo in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, told the BBC that police cells were not the best places for people who got so drunk they were "incapable of looking after themselves".
Nor should the taxpayer have to pick up the bill for people's drunkenness, he said.
"Why don't we take them to a drunk cell owned by a commercial company and get the commercial company to look after them during the night until they are sober?
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End Quote Steve White Police Federation of England and WalesIt's a great shame that due to cuts to the service we find ourselves considering the use of private contractors to carry out traditional police functions"
"When that is over, we will issue them with a fixed penalty and the company will be able to charge them for their care, which would be at quite significant cost and that might be a significant deterrent."
He said police were not "experts on health", so it could be hard to decide whether people should be in a police station or a hospital - and drunk people should not be "clogging up" A&E departments, he added.
Mr Lee is not the first to suggest the introduction of drunk tanks - Humberside Police and Crime Commissioner Matthew Grove recently raised the idea.
Steve White, vice-chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales, which represents officers, said he would favour "any measure that frees up police officer time and gets them back on to the streets".
But he said: "This proposal throws up far more questions than answers, particularly with regards to accountability.
"Privately-operated drunk tanks are neither a viable nor long-term solution to binge drinking and merely represent a sticking plaster for the problem."
He said the issue of binge drinking needed a "multi-agency approach rather than looking to the police for the answer".
"It's a great shame that due to the cuts to the service we find ourselves in a situation where we are even considering the use of private contractors to carry out traditional police functions," he added.
'Back on the street'The phrase drunk tank is an export from the US, where they are already in operation. Chuck Rose runs the Santa Barbara Sobering Center in California, which is paid for by the city council.
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End Quote Ch Insp Sue Robinson AcpoWhen we should be working in local communities tackling priorities set for us, we are more than likely to be addressing drunkenness and alcohol-related crime and disorder"
He told BBC Radio 5 live the site did not have cells and that people must stay there for at least four hours.
"We have rooms, and we have mats and blankets on the floor because you cannot fall out of a floor," he said.
"If they chose to leave early, then we call dispatch, they are rearrested and are taken to jail. When they are first brought in we let them sleep it off because we don't talk to people who are drunk or high on drugs - you cannot get through to them."
He said the centre's work helped the police "immensely".
"If they bring somebody and check them into our establishment, they are with us about five minutes and we take it from there," he said.
"If they have to take someone to jail, its an hour-and-a-half of paperwork. They [the police] are back on the street, where they can do the most good."
Nearly 50% of all violent crime is alcohol-related, Acpo said, while offenders are thought to be under the influence of alcohol in nearly half of all incidents of domestic abuse, and alcohol plays a part in 25% to 33% of known child abuse cases.
Ch Insp Sue Robinson, deputy chairwoman of Acpo's alcohol harm reduction group, told BBC Breakfast that drunkenness had a 24/7 impact.
"When we should be working in local communities tackling priorities set for us, we are more than likely to be addressing drunkenness and alcohol-related crime and disorder," she said.
Minimum priceMiles Beale, from the Wine and Spirit Trade Association, said the way to tackle alcohol-related crime and disorder was through "personal responsibility, locally-tailored solutions and partnership working, and the industry wants to be part of that partnership".
The In Focus: Alcohol Harm campaign launched by Mr Lee, which will include drink-drive operations, visits to disorder "hotspots" and talks to new university students, is intended to highlight the difficulties police face in dealing with drunk people.
Mr Lee said he was disappointed no licensing authorities had imposed charges for late-opening alcohol suppliers, designed to contribute towards policing the night-time economy.
And he also criticised the government for failing to implement the minimum price for a unit of alcohol in England and Wales.
The plans were shelved in July amid fears the change would hit responsible drinkers.
Crime prevention minister Jeremy Browne said: "I welcome this campaign to raise awareness of the impact of alcohol-fuelled crime, which costs around £11bn a year in England and Wales.
"Front-line police officers are all too aware of the drunken behaviour and alcohol-fuelled disorder that can effectively turn towns and cities into no-go areas for law-abiding people, particularly on Friday and Saturday nights."
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