How to put an end to early morning anarchy
We allow discos and nightclubs to remain open until 3am or 4am instead of stopping the sale of alcohol at 12.30am with drinking-up time until 1am, like any pub, during weekends.
From 1am onwards patrons would start to drift away and by 4am there would be no-one on the premises.
There would be no big rush out onto the streets at closing time, little or no drunkenness or disorder, and I bet there would be a significant drop in the sale of drugs around these venues.
The Minister for Justice instead decided that the gardaí should issue fines on the spot for being drunk. Rubbish! Laws that cannot be enforced should not be introduced.
Just imagine: 3.30am on any weekend when thousands flow out on to the streets, most of them under the influence. If there were a few gardaí standing outside issuing tickets to them, there would be a riot. Anyway, how many correct names and addresses would they get? Who would identify these people? How many would have the price of the fine on them at that hour, or hand it up?
If the minister thinks this is practical, then he should accompany a garda patrol at 3.30am and try to start issuing tickets. He’s removed from the real world. Any chance he’d step down?
Jerry Connolly
Clondrohid
Macroom
Co Cork
