debbyathome

Anyone come on here from Newcastle?
There was a report on CBBC last night about the British Government trying to stop bonge drinking by bringing in 24 hour drinking.
The report was from Newcastle and Whitley Bay pubs just wondered if any of you seen it.

debbyathome

Sorry thats Binge drinking

CalgaryBlade

I read that a mobile hospital has been set up in the centre of Newcastle to cope with the expected casualties of the new licensing laws.

Oh, and the police have been told to take a harder line with drunks.

wiggs1034

Nope, sadly it is just a new " no appointment needed drop-in clinic" like most other cities already have. Newcastle is no worse that anywhere else - in fact probably better than the bigger cities, as the Geordies are a friendly bunch, and whilst they drink like fish, they would go out of their way to help a stranger. Sadly much of the UK is no longer like that. We have lived just outside Newcastle for four years, and love the North East (we're both Southerners by birth).

Cadey

The old licencing laws meant that at 10:45 pm everyone bought 5 pints of beer and had half an hour to drink them , then everyone was kicked out of the pub to fight for the six taxis that were available in the city, and sometimes each other.
I think the british government has done something right for a change, although the daily mail and co won't let it lie, prepare for horror stories in the tabloids.

Rich_007

Ref binge drinking.

Here in BC I don't miss the sight of masses of drunken youth and more mature people publicly self-abusing themselves, getting into a stupor, to the of point pissing themselves and puking up in the gutters....no mobs of stag and hen nights staggering around towns and cities. There's no pools of puke and mountains of fast food wrappers to be swept up the next morning. A&E isn't swamped each weekend with fighting pissed up people staggering around attacking medical staff.

I like that people can't wander around publicly with open alcohol, that downtown is devoid of a gaggle of savage drunken loud kids drinking fighting and smashing things up.

I like that to get some booze in, you need to make a special trip.

I do see a small visible problem with street people drinking and there are some obvious abuse problems more related to domestic issues, caused by booze and other substances

It's just...generally speaking, nicer, less messy, quieter, more civilised IMHO, whilst accepting there are some sad, squalid cases of abuse, dependence, criminality, violence, etc if you keep your eyes open and see the reality of what is around and if the extremes of this are more excessive and unpleasant, they seem to be far less prevalent than in the UK.

Rich.

Biiiiink

I caught the tail-end of the Newcastle vomiting/fighting special on canadian TV last night...but I didn't realise the number of pubs with these new licenses was so minute?


"14 pubs in London have been granted 24-hour licences[?] (That’s about one all-night bar for every half-million people, which seems a bit crowded even by Central London standards.)" --> http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article...889801,00.html

nickybum

now i don't want to give the wrong impression here i love a pint or 5, but for the UK to have 24 hr drinking is the dumbest idea we've had yet. our young in the UK have a drink problem,

I've been on the receiving end of violence while waiting for a taxi and I'm not that old (31). i don't want my son to grow up like this, i want him to go out have fun with his buddies and not feel he may get a bottle in his face cus he looked the wrong way at someone. this weekend we will see if this master plan to keep up with Europe will work, or will it just put more pressure on are NHS staff and coppers who have to put up with the crap they receive every weekend we are told here in our postcode lottery that you can not have certain drugs for cancers because you live in x part of the country and there isn't the cash for it, but it's ok to put these ass h**es back together every weekend after they've kicked the crap out of each other we have the cash for that

CalgaryBlade

I disagree. If you've ever witnessed the British abroad (where the licensing laws are relaxed) you don't see the orderly progression of people making their way back to wherever as they finish their drinks. What you see is Brits drinking until whenever and then either vomiting, fighting or copulating until dawn breaks.

As for the UK, it's the nurses in A&E and the police on the streets who I feel sorry for.

My local sells Stella and there's shawarma shops and other fast food joints and resturants around. But there's never any trouble, and if i go out early on Saturday or Sunday morning no piles of vomit or litter.

It's a British disease, like football hooliganism. And the two are not unconnected.

dbd33

That could have been written by a resident of Virginia Water. Sure there may be no vomit within your gated estate but there's very much a Canadian tradition of heavy drinking, fighting and puking. Stompin' Tom Connors and Bob and Doug McKenzie examplify it. I suggest a visit to the Wawa Motor Inn or the Canada Tavern at Sherbourne and Queen in Toronto. Ask yourself, if only the British binge drink, why do bars in Canada have barber's chairs ?

CalgaryBlade

Get your facts straight, I don't live in a "gated estate". The streets to which I refer are public streets, with public houses and bars on them.

Sure there's heavy drinking here, Stampede for example. What there isn't (in this city anyway) is hordes of lads and ladettes littering the streets high on the latest alco-pops.

Currnetly there is a move to restrict the bars on 17th Ave (Red mile) because of rowdy behaviour. I've been down there at "closing" time and they ain't seen nothing!

Rachelmark

I am really interested in this as we have 2 teenagers (19 and 16) who are beginning to worry us with their drinking habits. Although the eldest is technically an adult he has just started uni and drinks every night. He came home last night with a cut arm and no idea how he did it. The 16 year old thinks this is cool, and has been grounded a number of times for drinking under age. It seems to be the done thing that they drink as much as they can before they go out because it is cheaper!

We visited Vancouver last year and did not see any drunken youngsters. However, we were not sure whether this was because we didn't go to the teen hangouts or because there is not the same problem as there is here in the Uk. Please can anyone tell me the truth???

dbd33

You gotta admit the reference to Stella suggests an effete neighbourhood, working Canadians drink X, 50 or Blue. You're not likely to see a brawl in a place that sells Stella and single malts.

Hudman

I have to agree I do not think the British attitude to drink will be greatly altered, there seems to be something in the Briitish pysche that is released Fri/Sat night and on holiday. I can remember witnessing Kilburn High Road on a Sunday night,( one half closed earlier)..thousands of drunken punters getting another 30 mins more boozing across the road, surely there will be similar situations with people moving on to bars that may take advantage of the law change. I wish it would result in European style bars, but I doubt it.
I too have not seen the old pavement pizza's and excrement etc everywhere that was the norm back home.
As regards to Kids drinking, they do, but I think the preferred drug is the weed.

MikeUK

you don't see to many Drunks in Vancouver... mainly because Grass is cheaper