1. NSW Labor calls for Premier Barry O’Farrell to enforce earlier closing times on Sydney’s pubs and clubs
NSW Labor has called for the Premier to cut parliament’s summer holiday short in order to pass new legislation for Sydney’s pubs and clubs, following a spike in alcohol fuelled violence, including the allegedly unprovoked assault of Sydney teenager Daniel Christie on New Years Eve.
The opposition are advocating the solution currently implemented in the City of Newcastle, where pubs and clubs are forced to close at 3am, not accept any new patrons after 1am and stop serving shots after 10pm.
2. Queensland announces police scorecards
Queensland will roll out a new ‘scorecard’ system for police officers, in a bid to cut the state’s crime by 10%. The scorecards will keep track of each officer’s number of traffic fines issued, RBTs held, street checks and calls for service. The scorecards are currently being trialled on the Gold Coast, with plans to implement the system across the state.
3. A-League teams punished for fans’ behaviour in wild brawl
The Melbourne Victory and Western Sydney Wanderers A-League soccer teams are set to be the first clubs to be stripped of competition points due to the behaviour of their fans, following a wild brawl in Melbourne’s CBD last week. Football Federation Australia has announced that the clubs stand to lose three points each, and has given the clubs until Tuesday to develop a defence.
A-League chief Damien de Bohun said of the proposed sanction: “Today we are saying that maintaining the Hyundai A-League as a safe, family friendly environment is of paramount importance.”
4. Kim Jong-un’s execution of his uncle sends the media into a spin
The media has been abuzz this morning over reports that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un killed his uncle by feeding him to a pack of 120 dogs. The claims made international headlines following reports in Hong Kong’s Wen Wei Po newspaper that Jan Song Thaek was killed ‘quan jue’, a method of execution by dogs.
Top Comments
#2. Are the police finally admitting that they set quotas for their officers?
This one confuses me - I can't find it online in the news.
Just what is it they're going to keep tabs on? And who's going to be in charge of those records?
The Newcastle Solution is a small step in the right direction.
Who, though, is going to be brave enough to legislate that pubs and clubs close at - gasp! - midnight? That could work.