Concern that Australia has a problem with alcohol had increased in the past year, the polling for the Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education shows. Eighty per cent of NSW respondents expressed concern, up from 74 per cent a year ago. Laws enforcing a 3am closing time (80 per cent), 1am lockouts (66 per cent) and 10pm bottle shop closures (63 per cent) received strong support. But the most popular policies to deal with alcohol-fuelled violence were greater penalties (86 per cent), CCTV at venues (85 per cent), increased police numbers (82 per cent) and more public transport (81 per cent). "There is currently under way a well-organised, highly vocal, industry-backed campaign to undermine the trading hour measures, but it's very important that we don't make the mistake of thinking this noisy minority represents the wishes of the majority of New South Wales voters, because they don't," said FARE chief executive Michael Thorn. He said a similar campaign had been previously mounted in Victoria under the former Bracks government in the name of protecting live music, which had led to the watering down of laws there.

He said the 1.30am lockout in the Sydney CBD and Kings Cross was a "modest" change to trading hours. "No business has to close its doors, yet the whole case seems to be based on the music industry being underpinned by the sale of alcohol. There's no science about these claims," said Mr Thorn. Violence data, by contrast, shows the city lockouts and 3am last drinks had accelerated a decline in assaults, he said. "In the hospitality industry, everyone knows businesses open and close all the time. We are in the middle of great economic uncertainty at the moment and we shouldn't be surprised businesses are under pressure. These heroic claims it is all down to the lockouts are fallacious." More than a quarter (27 per cent) of NSW respondents said they have been affected by alcohol-related violence. Almost one in six said they had been a victim of alcohol-related violence.

"The impact of alcohol-fuelled violence extends beyond the immediate victim. It affects those who bear witness to the incident, and the victim's family and friends. And it places a huge burden on local hospitals and emergency workers," he said. The polling was conducted in January, before the social media campaign against the lockouts exploded publicly in February. The number of people polled who thought pubs and clubs weren't doing enough to address alcohol misuse rose from 55 per cent last year to 61 per cent. More respondents (88 per cent) cited alcohol as making the city unsafe, than people affected by drugs (80 per cent).