Many Melbourne residents are concerned about the dangers late at night in the CBD- Fear of being assaulted, of robbery or of being a ‘just for fun’ victim or casualty. Late-night workers in Melbourne have many of the same concerns when it is time to go home and public transport is at its worst.

Alcohol and other drugs are crucial causative factors in many of these assaults. CoRBA members have been raising these safety issues with the Council and State Government for years.

The media’s response to the safety concerns has generally been more police on the streets and/or harsher court sentences for offenders. While these measures might give citizens more confidence, CoRBA members assert that more must be done at a policy level.

As well as reviewing policing strategies, CoRBA calls for a strategic response based on independent research.

CoRBA calls for:

1. ‣Reducing the density of or number of licensed premises

2. ‣Limiting the size and density of licensed premises;

3. ‣Strict controls and enforcement on hours of trading

4. ‣Giving citizens a greater opportunity to participate in the granting of liquor licences.

ACHIEVEMENTS

1. ‣CoRBA has successfully lobbied the Liquor Licensing authority to post license applications on their website (hyperlink), a measure which had been resisted for some years. Now all citizens can keep up to date with license applications in their local area.