Sydney lockout laws would be wound back by the end of the year under a dramatic plan

CONTROVERSIAL bar and club lockout laws in Sydney could be rolled back by the end of the year - but there’s a catch.

CONTROVERSIAL lockout laws in Sydney would be rolled back by the end of the year under a dramatic proposal being considered by the government.

Deputy Premier John Barilaro is reportedly urging colleagues to support a plan to completely scrap the forced 1.30am lockouts on licenced venues in the CBD area.

Under current legislation, nightclubs and bars in the city, Kings Cross and Darlinghurst areas must deny entry to patrons after 1.30am and cease serving alcohol at 3am.

Channel 9 reports that Mr Barilaro has taken a proposal to cabinet to wind back restrictions in the CBD, in a bid to revive Sydney’s struggling night-life.

Since the lockout laws were introduced, the Kings Cross precinct has seen a decline in patrons to local businesses. Picture: Bill Hearne

Peter Lew’s Kings Cross venue Barrio Chino was forced to shutdown after patron numbers plummeted. Picture: Toby Zerna

Mr Barilaro’s office declined to comment. It’s understood reports of his proposal are the result of a leak about the Cabinet discussion.

Keep Sydney Open, an anti-lockout law lobby group, cautiously welcomed the news on Thursday afternoon after more than four years of campaigning.

“It’s going to be an absolute godsend for businesses, musicians, creatives and tourists and young people across the city,” Keep Sydney Open organiser Tyson Koh told news.com.au.

“Unfortunately, some businesses didn’t make it and have been forced to close their doors. Several more are still doing it tough and barely hanging on.”

Deputy Premier John Barilaro is understood to be pushing a plan to roll back lockout laws. Picture: AAP

If approved, news.com.au understands the wind back would impact the CBD only, with Kings Cross excluded from any changes.

“That’s very disappointing,” Mr Koh said.

“I’m not sure if anyone (from the government) has walked through Kings Cross lately but it’s a completely different place. It’s a ghost town.

“There are far fewer people heading to Kings Cross these days. Why it would left out of this proposal is beyond me. It beggars belief.”

Similarly, Oxford Street in Darlinghurst — once an iconic hub for Sydney’s LGBT community — is littered with empty retail spaces and abandoned night clubs.

“Oxford Street is basically empty. It has suffered enormously and so I think maintaining lockout laws there has absolutely no justification,” Mr Koh said.

After the introduction of lockout laws, suburbs outside the zone — including Newtown in the inner-west — have thrived. Picture: Dean Asher

Strict lockout laws were introduced in the wake of violent assaults, including the death of Sydney teenager Thomas Kelly.

Mr Koh said those incidents were tragic, and the offenders had been caught, prosecuted and were now behind bars.

Punishing the majority for the actions of a few was unfair and had been shown to be a policy failure, he said.

And Sydney’s reputation as a vibrant global city had suffered.

“People have completely changed their habits and they don’t come into the city anymore. If you’re in Sydney’s CBD after dark any night of the week, it feels eerie and desolate.

“How many international cities have that sort of feeling? The impact to the city’s culture has been struggling.”