Queensland laws meant to curb alcohol-fuelled violence have directly led to a rise in people “pre-loading” on alcohol before they go out to party precincts, new research has found.

Researchers from Griffith University, QUT and UQ collaborated on three connected studies from 2014 to 2017 measuring the blood alcohol readings of patrons as they entered and exited five night-time entertainment districts (NEDs) in south-east Queensland.

A new study has found patrons are drinking more before they go out to party hotspots like Brisbane's Fortitude Valley as a result of the state government's laws meant to curb alcohol-fuelled violence Credit:Harrison Saragossi

In 2016, the state government introduced laws which, among other things, reduced the cutoff for serving alcohol for venues in NEDs by 2 hours, from 5am to 3am, and also banned the sale of “rapid intoxication drinks” - in particular shots - after midnight.

Griffith school of applied psychology Associate Professor Grant Devilly said they found, after the laws came in, there was a noticeable increase in how drunk patrons were when they arrived at the party precincts.