AMA (NSW) President: why are people arguing to make Sydney less safe?

AMA (NSW) President, Dr Saxon Smith, says alcohol lockout laws in Sydney are saving lives and preventing injuries.

“At the end of the day, the question is: should people’s safety be overridden by people’s right to buy alcohol at any time of day or night, at any location?

“The evidence shows, not just in this case but in a wide variety of research, that there is a strong link between access to alcohol and increased levels of violence,” Dr Smith said.

“The lockout laws restrict access in a certain part of Sydney at certain times and we’ve seen a massive drop in violence.

“That means there are people alive today who might otherwise have died without these laws.

“And there are people this morning who weren’t attacked last night because of the lockouts,” Dr Smith said.

“The fact that violence has dropped as much as it has shows this is a highly effective public health policy.

“Prevention is better than a cure and prevention of violence is a massive benefit to the entire community, not just the victims and the emergency services,” Dr Smith said.

“The opponents of the lockout laws are actually arguing to make Sydney a less safe place.

“I’m honestly surprised at the level of opposition to these laws given the amount of pressure that was applied to the Government to do something about the violence.

“The Government has significantly reduced the level of violence and now there are people arguing for a return to the bad old days of just a couple of years ago.

“None of their arguments are compelling enough to put people’s safety at risk,” Dr Smith said.

Media contact: Lachlan Jones (02) 9902 8113 / 0419 402 955