Earlier Coromandel closing times put community health first

ROYAL AUSTRALASIAN COLLEGE OF SURGEONS
MEDIA RELEASE

________________________________________

Surgeons say earlier Coromandel closing times put community’s health first
Friday 18 December, 2015

The Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (RACS) supports the Thames Coromandel District Council’s new measures to introduce earlier closing times for the regions' bars and liquor outlets.

The new rules, which require off-licences to close at 9pm and on-licences at 1am, and allow for one-way door policies to be imposed at the discretion of the alcohol licensing authority, come into force in two stages during January and April 2016 and seek to limit the negative impact that alcohol has on the Thames Coromandel community.

Professor Randall Morton, Chair of the New Zealand National Board, applauded the Thames Coromandel District Council for their strong stance on alcohol-related harm, stating that their leadership sets a positive example for district councils across the country to follow.

“Alcohol-related harm places a considerable weight on the New Zealand Health system and on the lives of many New Zealanders,” Professor Morton said.

“Despite facing strong industry opposition, the Thames Coromandel District Council has persevered and placed the health of its communities first by implementing measures that have been proven to reduce the effects of alcohol-related harm.”

“Studies by the Australasian College of Emergency Medicine show that 1 in 8 people in an emergency department on a Friday orSaturday night will be there for alcohol-related reasons,” Professor Morton said.

“There is strong evidence now that shows that earlier closing times correlate with a dramatic reduction in the number of alcohol-related presentations in emergency department. This frees up doctors for other patients who need help.”

“One-way door policies have also been shown to have a positive impact on the quality of a city’s nightlife by dramatically reducing the number of night-time assaults. By staggering the times at which people go home, there isn’t as much of an influx of intoxicated people on the streets come closing time.”

RACS strongly advocates for three key areas where alcohol-related harm can effectively be reduced, summarised by the acronym HOT – for Hours, Outlets and Taxes. This encompasses a restriction on trading hours, reducing outlet density, and applying a stepped volumetric tax on alcohol.

“Introduction of earlier closing times places the health of the community first and RACS urges those councils who have not yet done so to follow the lead of Thames Coromandel and adopt similar measures to reduce alcohol-related harm.”

© Scoop Media