We all saw this coming, really. Turns out that the Sydney CBD lockout has done literally nothing to stop the violence in the city. A recent study by two legit economists and a mathematics post-doc from Keep Sydney Open has come out swinging, pretty much shrugging argument that the lockout laws actively decreased the amount of violence in the area is a bit of a farce, as the rates peaked in 2008 and were already steadily declining before the laws came into effect. Rly makes u think.
The results have also explained that although there’s less people heading to Kings Cross to party, the ratio of punter-to-punch-up has increased. That means you’re more likely to get yourself into trouble than you were before the lockouts were enforced.
Don’t go out in any other key nightspot areas outside of the CBD either, because the number of non-domestic assaults in these areas have actually skyrocketed since the lockouts came into effect.
Violence in suburbs like Surry Hills, Newtown, Coogee, and Bondi have seen a 30% increase in alcohol-related violence, and the level of violence around Pyrmont (looking at you, Star Casino) has spiked so much that it’s now on-par with the levels in the Cross that kicked the lockouts into gear in the first place.
Moving the late-night partiers out of the CBD has not stopped the violence, it’s literally moved it elsewhere. It’s a huge ‘told you so’ right in the face of Mike Baird and the knee jerkers in NSW Government.
It’s true that the lockouts have changed the amount of people that are heading out to the Cross for a good and nice time out on the tins, but it hasn’t curbed the drinking habits of the people that are instead heading to house parties or other BYO events. People are likely to sink more beers because there’s nobody there to cut them off. So consumption rates haven’t changed, and people are stocking up on bulk piss before the 10pm takeaway lockout.
The rest of the state has been clocking up pretty reasonable stats when it comes to alcohol-fuelled violence, keeping with the downwards trend. The lockouts are only in the Sydney CBD, and they very obviously haven’t worked to stop violence overall. So, there’s that.
The Keep Sydney Open rally is back for round two this weekend, and with this fire beneath them, we might just see something shift.
Photo: Pedestrian/Chloe Sargeant.
