Legislation can change a lot about a city – very quickly. We saw it with the introduction of small bar licenses, and we've seen it again lately with Sydney's lockout laws, introduced in 2014. These laws mean that all venues within Kings Cross, Darlinghurst and the CBD 'Entertainment Precinct' cannot take new customers after 1.30am, and must call last drinks at 3am. State-wide, you cannot buy takeaway alcohol after 10pm (yes, even posh wines).
These laws were created in response to alcohol fueled violence in Sydney, and in particular, two fatal incidents. While the rate of alcohol related violence has declined in lockout areas since the laws were passed, there have been other, unintended consequences.
