We Commissioned An Independent Lockouts Survey & It Might Make You Cry

Here at PEDESTRIAN.TV we weren’t totally convinced by the polling around Sydney’s lockout laws, including the dodgy pro-lockout sample study by the Sydney Morning Herald, so we decided to team up with the guys at SurveyMonkey to conduct an independent, unbiased view of public opinion around the laws. 


We wanted an independent, statistically viable survey that took the question beyond our audience and considered New South Wales as a whole. Here’s what we found.


The Sydney lockout laws are a contentious issue, and it’s pretty clear what side PEDESTRIAN.TV falls on – we’re against them, and the hugely damaging impact they’re having on Sydney’s nightlife, culture and international reputation.
But what does the rest of NSW reckon? It’s important to know where we, and social movements like Keep Sydney Open, need to focus our attention.
Our survey with SurveyMonkey had 618 responses from NSW, with an even split of male and female participants. More respondents came from Greater Sydney than Inner Sydney (53% vs 41%).
The long and short of it? 65% of respondents were supportive of the lockout laws, with 40.8% describing themselves as ‘very supportive’. This may be partially attributed to the 39% of people who said that alcohol is an ‘extremely large’ contributing factor to violence in Sydney.
But the results to the questions about nightlife were more interesting. 67% of respondents said that the lockout laws had not affected their lives at all. A fairly significant number (33%) of people surveyed said that they do not go out at all – with a further 39% saying they only go out once a week maximum.
The conclusion here is pretty clear: a significant portion of the population being targeted with anti-lockout messages aren’t party animals, and might not be won over by discussion of the night-time economy or Sydney culture. If you don’t go out, why would you care?
There’s a divide between older and younger people on the issue too, as you might have guess – but it’s not as significant as you might think. Older NSW residents were more likely to support the lockouts, with 75.4% of people aged 41 – 59 in favour. But 39% of residents aged 18 – 29 support them too.
That’s more people than you might expect given the huge turnout at protest events like the recent Keep Sydney Open rally, which drew an estimated 15,000 protesters in the loudest call yet to have Premier Mike Baird rethink the suffocating laws.
Many of the responses suggested that safety is very important to Sydneysiders – and they’re by-and-large willing to swallow the death of nightlife in order to get it. Those who provided explanations of their responses tended to suggest that they now felt safer in Sydney because of the lockouts – whether or not the actual crime stats back that up.
What does this all mean for you, the legends at Keep Sydney Open and us at PEDESTRIAN.TV? It means that we’ve got a long way to go in showing people that Sydney can be a vibrant cultural hotspot while also addressing their concerns about safety.
Now that the government has decided to listen to anti-lockout activists, we’re in a greater position to make our case and keep the campaign strong up until the policy review in August. 
In other words: we’ve got to keep fighting the good fight – consistently and loudly – if we have a chance in hell of turning things around / really, truly being heard above the roar of the protests.

‘Keep Sydney Open’ Rally 2016

Spot yaself in the 15,000 legends who turned out to protest the clubbering of Sydney’s culture at the ‘Keep Sydney Open’ rally on Sunday. Shockingly, the day *didn’t* descend into alcohol-induced violence.

Posted by pedestrian.tv on Sunday, February 21, 2016


Research provided through SurveyMonkey’s research and insights service, SurveyMonkey Audience.

Photo: Pedestrian / Chloe Sargeant.

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