DRINKING and Drinking and drinking.

I went to a public meeting organized by the Police to hear from the Community what the big issues are they want tackled. Interestingly enough the Police say that 80% of people being locked up are under some influence of alcohol. It was good to hear that the hype surrounding drugs being so bad and so evil is far from the reality when compared to the huge negative impact of booze. I have long argued that the drug laws in this country should be changed and that Christchurch should lead the way. Speaking at J-Day last month, I talked about the need for a revolution in our approach to criminalizing drug use. It is interesting to note that our sister city, Seattle, instructed the police to stop focusing so much on cannabis crimes and spend more time on violent crimes. This has been a very successful approach. Let’s face it, if you got your house broken into, would you rather have your burglary attended to and dealt with or someone locked up for smoking a joint?

Back to drinking, council has just ratified some new and extended alcohol ban bylaws. These bylaws mean no drinking in public in the Central City 24/7 and also place lesser restrictions in areas such as Sumner, New Brighton, Jellie Park, Northlands, Colombo Street. If you get caught, it’s a fine of up to $20,000 and a criminal conviction. So the next time you feel like having a drink in public be careful.