Sydney:
- NSW Premier Chris Minns has taken the City of Sydney to task over an archaic outside drinking rule that requires people to sit down or stand at a table if they want to drink outside.
- Minns has stated that adults don’t need a rule book to work out if they need a table next to them when they have a drink.
- The long-standing rule is an unnecessary bit of red tape left over from the lockout laws.
It’s an argument that would have the city’s millions of foreign visitors – and many from Interstate – scratching their heads. Should you be allowed to drink standing up without a table?
A long-standing drinking rule in Sydney has punters not knowing whether they should sit down or stand up. Now Premier Chris Minns has taken to social media to question the City of Sydney’s stubborn policy about outdoor drinking rules.
This comes almost a year after he declared he would scrap the archaic rule that forces punters to sit down if they want to have a drink in a pub or venue’s outdoor space.
They were changed in other NSW towns. Yet, the City of Sydney’s outdoor dining guidelines remain unchanged, micromanaging adults if they want to have a drink outside.
A rule that makes no sense
“Last year we promised to end the ridiculous rule that banned patrons from standing outside with a beer at the pub (we’ve since delivered on that),” wrote Minns in a Facebook post on Thursday, October 23.
“It appears not everyone got the memo.”
His remarks are in light of Lord Mayor Clover Moore’s insistence that patrons of a pub must be seated if they have an area for outdoor customers.
Minns rightfully points out that this odd rule, seemingly a relic from the lockout laws that destroyed Sydney’s nightlife (and night-time economy), is at odds with the civilised outdoor drinking culture you’ll find in big cities like London and Paris.
“Adults don’t need a rule book to work out if they need a table next to them when they have a drink.”
The current guidelines state that outdoor dining areas may only be used by “patrons seated at tables or standing at cocktail tables consuming food and drink.”
Around 250 NSW venues have already been approved to have patrons stand and drink outside. Yet many still seem to be constrained by council regulations.
Make Sydney Al Fresco Again
“This is a simple change that would add life and atmosphere to the city while helping small venues thrive,” said Minns.
“Sydney is one of the most beautiful cities on earth, but red tape has stopped venues from properly using their outdoor space.”
The fact that this bizarre rule still exists is frankly embarrassing for Sydney, especially at a time when there’s a concerted effort to really push for this city to be taken as seriously as New York, London and Paris in discussions about the world’s most exciting cities. No one likes to be micromanaged, especially when they’re trying to let loose and take the edge off at one of Sydney’s favourite pubs.
Even the reasoning makes no sense.
In a statement made to Daily Telegraph, a council spokeswoman said patrons were allowed to “stand at high tables, shelves and cocktail tables” because “the surfaces assist the management of outdoor dining areas by providing space for food and drinks.”
Further adding to the confusion about these rules is the fact that they aren’t even applied consistently.
Izzy Williams and Izzy Morrisey, owners of one of Darlinghurst’s most popular pubs, The Old Fitz, have gone on record to say some venues seem to enforce it via their security guards, while others barely bat an eyelid.
Even the council spokeswoman has said that the council does not “enforce sitting down” but rather takes an “educational approach.”
Make sense to you? Yeah, neither.
If this rule is rarely enforced anyway, what reason does the City of Sydney have for not scrapping it immediately? Furthermore, why has this rule persisted for so long, even years after the lockout laws were considered a gross misstep and smartly abandoned just months before the 2020 pandemic reared its ugly head?
The Australian Hotels Society backs the idea of being able to stand outside and drink.
“As long as there are no problems with egress and RSA rules are followed,” said AHA’s NSW chief executive, John Whelan.
“We should be taking advantage of the great weather we have here in Sydney, in particular and support the state government’s recent vibrancy reforms.”
