3am closing. What curfew???

How about some tougher laws?

Gosh and bother. Who on earth would have ever thought that the genius idea of shutting pubs early would curb bad behaviour. Any fool who thought this thing would make any difference should have a long hard look at themselves. I will say it just once more fix late night transport and you will solve the problem.

Wow, what a shock, hey. Somebody should ask the Newcastle cabbies their opinions on this. I've talked to quite a few on the drive home and they all say the same thing - more police patrolling the streets and more late night transport options are the only sensible answer here. You're never going to stop people from binge drinking. It's part of the Aussie culture.

The problem is in the Australian culture. The majority of people drink to get drunk which then causes violence. People have been bought up thinking that unless you drink a lot you can't have a good time which goes to show the level of intelligence of Australians. We must learn to adopt the European (excluding the Anglo countries) attitude to drinking which is to drink and enjoy alcohol with your meal. The drinking culture in Australia will take many years to change.

Shut the pubs earlier (say, at 1AM), then send the cops in to arrest any drunks that start causing trouble after closing time. People who binge-drink are just as bad as other junkies... and are much worse in terms of the damage they cause. Spending a night at the police station for being drunk and disorderly is exactly the wake-up call they need.

Until we show the crime with times it is hard to establish the links. I thought the Australian culture was respect, mateship and fun not vomit, violence and bashing.

The problem with tougher laws is that there is less grog sold. This mess is not about enjoyment, it's about selling alcohol for profit. You can be sure that those who own liquor licenses are not doing it tough.

Drunkenness is stupid and destructive, but part of the human condition. When drunks hurt others, as they frequently do, legislation is needed, as those with a commercial interest are not objective. We have just learned that "free markets" are not the answer to everything. Humans will do something if they can, including irrational things. It stands to reason that restriction of access will reduce consumption, all other things being equal. But 3 am, for heaven's sake, doesn't sound like much of a restriction to me. Shut the pubs at midnight and let everyone sober up and come to their senses, for the good of their families, their relationships and the community.

People who claim that the curfew/earlier closing times will assist in reducing crime/anti-social behaviour are simply ignoring the facts of the world! In my profession I have travelled the world working with local Councils on inner city planning issues. It has been long recognised throughout the world that earlier closing times and across the board curfews cause MORE problems by forcing people into the streets all at once with nowhere to go. Cabs/buses/trains can't cope with everyone arriving all at once and people get frustrated standing in the streets for hours waiting for the next bus/taxi. Many places are extending trading hours to promote a busy night-time economy and busy streets - busy streets are safe and busy places make it more attractive to taxi/bus operators because they get lots of clients - trying to make places BUSIER and trading longer are ways most of Europe is dealing with anti-social behaviour. Shorter trading hours promote 'clock-watching' where people arrive at the pub, know that they have 2 hours left to get as many drinks in as possible - if the pub/club was open all night why would anyone bother to consume quickly?!?!?! Taxes on pre-mixed drinks have shown (all over the world) to cause MORE drinking, because people mixing their own tend to be a little more liberal with the 'good stuff'. Not to mention problems associated with drink spiking (glasses are much easier to spike than a bottle with a narrow top....... In the UK, they solved part of the problem of alcohol related violence by EXTENDING trading hours for pubs - and there is a lot of evidence to suggest it has been helpful. Don't take my world for it, read the recent independent report on extended licencing produced in London which assesses the last 3 years since introduction of 24 hour licencing!. I don't see how anyone can claim that throwing 1000's of semi-intoxicated people onto the streets all at once is ever going to solve anything.....people who have moved into the CBD (a busy, city environment) and are now demanding curfews have NO understanding of the issues and should stick to watching re-runs of A Country Practice.