Queensland Locked Out
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Anti-alcoholic violence police team disbanded ahead of report
Mar 8th
It seems like the State Government doesn’t even care about our safety. Kudos Anna Bligh! Way to tackle the problem; maybe if you reduce the amount of police in our streets then that will resolve the problem… sigh
All we ask for is more funding to be provided to our police so they can tackle the issues of alcohol fuelled violence and for harsher penalties against the offenders.
Thanks to the Courier Mail for reporting this. Link to actual article here:
A CRACK police unit targeting booze-fuelled violence has been disbanded just days before the Government is handed a crucial report on how to tackle the problem.
The flying squad, set up two years ago to target violent hotspots in some of the busiest entertainment precincts in the state, has been quietly grounded because of a lack of resources.
The district police chief yesterday confirmed the team of six operating out of the City and Valley would return to general duties and not be replaced, as part of a review into all specialist units.
A long-awaited report from the committee undertaking a parliamentary inquiry into alcohol-related violence will table its findings in State Parliament this week.
Premier Anna Bligh announced the inquiry in July after The Courier-Mail exposed the growing problem of drunken violence and injury at Queensland’s popular nightspots. The inquiry examined several strategies, including reduced trading hours, transport concepts and more resources.
Metropolitan North Assistant Commissioner Ross Barnett said the disbanding of the flying squad was about better deployment of resources. “We’re going to see how all these new practices work and continue to review it and amend it if we need to,” he said.
The move comes as the State Government rules out funding another Operation Merit, which targeted trouble by doubling officer numbers in the City and Valley club areas.
“Merit was a one-off and we’ve got to run our operations based on our approved strength, and the strength we have in the City and the Valley is a finite number,” Mr Barnett said.
“No one’s ever going to knock back more staff – that’s a luxury we don’t always get, but unless and until that happens, our challenge is to make what we’ve got as efficient and effective as we can.”
Operation Merit provided for 16,000 extra hours of police patrolling in December and January, which led to 589 arrests and 1415 charges.
Brisbane City Licensees Association president Mark Lassman said the more support they could get, the better.
“We can’t really enforce the law – so if someone’s becoming a problem and they’re asked to leave, this is where these guys were experts with dealing with that sort of stuff,” Mr Lassman said.
Police Minister Neil Roberts denied police were under-resourced and said they would continue conducting targeted blitzes in entertainment precincts.
Opposition justice spokesman Lawrence Springborg said that without the resources, any strategies from this week’s inquiry findings would be “window dressing”.
Paramedics seek ban on pool cues at pubs and clubs
Jan 29th
QUEENSLAND paramedics want pool cues and glass ashtrays banned at pubs and clubs to reduce the risk of being attacked by drunks.
A survey of 142 ambulance officers showed 94 per cent had been assaulted in the past five years.
Of those, a third were punched or kicked and about half were spat at or had an object thrown at them.
The Liquor Hospitality and Miscellaneous Workers Union, which represents paramedics, says drunken violence is getting worse and called for curfews on offenders.
In the submission to a parliamentary inquiry on booze-fuelled violence, the union said it supported harsher penalties, more security cameras and police, advertising restrictions, education campaigns and metal detectors and ID scanners for late-night venues.
It agreed with the State Government’s glass ban, which will be rolled out in up to 75 high-risk venues next month, and said pool cues and other glass items such as ashtrays should be phased out.
LHMU assistant secretary Michael de Brenni said the risk of injury through alcohol-fuelled violence was “just not tolerable”.
“All steps have to be taken to remove that risk,” he said.
“A whole range of measures need to be implemented, including the removal of potential weapons.”
But Normanby Hotel owner Mark Lassman said it was going too far.
“What next – salt and pepper shakers … bar stools fastened to the floor?” he said. “The answer lies in personal responsibility. We need harsher penalties, not just for violence but anti-social behaviour.”
Bond University criminologist Professor Paul Wilson said banning pool cues and ashtrays was discriminating against the majority because of the behaviour of a few.
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