A New Opening For Pubs

Newcastle Herald

Friday August 1, 2008

Jeff Corbett

SOMETHING has changed in Newcastle police's attitude to hotel opening hours.

Or, to be more precise, something has changed in the attitude of the most senior Newcastle police, because I'm led to believe that some police on lower rungs are as adamantly opposed to the alcohol spree in inner Newcastle as they've ever been.

That may be because they're as adamantly unhappy as they've ever been about being assaulted, about mopping up drunken brawls, about the muggings and assaults and malicious damage that fill the streets in weekends' pre-dawn hours.

So what's changed?

Let's work from the beginning, or at least from May last year when the then Newcastle police chief, Charles Haggett, told inner-Newcastle publicans that the time was right for them to agree to a 12-month trial of a 1am lockout, or curfew, and a 3am close.

The beginning can be traced to 1989 when the State Government introduced extended opening hours for hotels, launching a culture of all-night drinking among young people, but the Newcastle challenge to the havoc that followed as more pubs gained more opening hours didn't get teeth until Superintendent Haggett joined its ranks.

Talking on the other side, and doing lots of it, was the AHA's Hunter representative, Bruce Woods, and he wasn't in favour of a curfew and earlier closing. Mr Woods was in favour of more talking.

Days later AHA NSW chief John Thorpe announced that the publicans would not agree to the trial, adding that they were "not in the job of doing the police's job".

As has been well established, the AHA wielded great influence over the Labor Government through donations, and the only surprising aspect of Premier Morris Iemma's opposition to a curfew and earlier closing when he visited Newcastle a fortnight later was that it was so brazen. He, too, wanted more talking.

Courageously in the face of such a powerful alliance between politics and money Superintendent Haggett continued to declare that "Newcastle needs to become a safe place" and he continued his fight through talks, forums and the onslaught of politics. He was supported by an inner-Newcastle resident, Tony Brown, who represented a growing number of residents.

Finally the police and the residents stood together against the publicans and the Labor Government before the Liquor Administration Board, whose chairman, David Armati, took a good look and described the alcohol-inspired behaviour in inner-Newcastle as "appalling, disgusting, disgraceful, inappropriate, outrageous, revolting, shocking as well as criminal". Do you get his drift?

Mr Armati introduced a 1am lockout and last drinks at 2.30am. That came into effect immediately, and so did a string of substantially unsuccessful court challenges from the publicans who argued, shockingly, that the new limits were not in the public interest!

Six weeks ago a young Woodberry man alleged that he was assaulted by two police officers outside one of the Newcastle hotels fighting the curtailed hours, the Crown and Anchor, and security film of that has been viewed by senior police. It was touted by some as a negotiating card with the police, but Assistant Commissioner Lee Shearer denies that it was.

Two or three weeks ago the leader of the push for a safe Newcastle, Superintendent Charles Haggett, was moved from Newcastle to the Port Stephens police command. Newcastle had become safer but not safe, with crime down by 36 per cent between 1am and 6am and by 43 per cent between 3am and 6am.

On Tuesday the Northern Region police commander, Lee Shearer, announced that as the publicans were about to enter court for another challenge police had agreed to an easing of restrictions, extending lockout and closing times by half an hour.

So what changed? Assistant Commissioner Shearer told me late yesterday that what had changed was that she had brought to the case an objective view that took into account the uncertain result of any litigation.

Blog with Jeff @ www.theherald.com.au

Is this a good result for Newcastle?

jcorbett@theherald.com.au

© 2008 Newcastle Herald

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