What For You Is The Most Important Issue In Warrington?

[P J]

But as you wish to engage with young people and involve them more telling them that they should pay more for travel, booze etc. will probably alienate them. I wonder is it fair to punish the majority of people who are responsible drinkers by upping prices in order to make alcohol less affordable for young people. I can't see how that would work as your average young person has much more disposable income than say a pensioner or a parent with a mortgage. Would it be fair to put out of reach the price of a few pints for a 70 year old man just to make alcohol dearer for better off young people who do not know how to behave after drink? I have my own theories on why the youth of today seem to struggle to behave when they have been drinking but increasing prices across the board, for me, is not the solution.

[Jonathan Levy]

Whilst I said I feel the cost of Booze should be increased, I never said that about travel. What I said about Travel was I don't really agree that Bus fares should cheaper for students than everyone else however I wasn't implying that prices should be increased. In my opinion it should only be those retired from work who pay cheaper fares. In terms of the price of Booze being increased, I actually feel that some young people would accept the price increase and would see why it has been done, or at least I feel those who drink sensibly would. Again I feel that older people 65+ such as pensioners should perhaps get slightly cheaper prices than everyone else. I personally feel that if a group of young people were asked why they love alcohol and drink so much of it, some of them would mention the relative cheapness of it and the fact that often it is so easy to get hold of.

 

What then is your theory on why the youth of today struggle to behave when they have been drinking?

[P J]

My theory is purely anecdotal and impossible to prove but I feel that a learning stage in drinking sensibly has been lost over recent times. When I was 18 I couldn't wait to go for a pint with my Dad. When we went to the local pub we knew or were known by all there and we were taught how to behave respectfully and to respect the effects of alcohol(sometimes a painful lesson ), but learn we did and if we stepped out of line we were put right by people who cared about us.

Nowadays some young people bypass this apprenticeship and hurtle headlong into binge drinking and whatever else you call drinking as much as you can as quick as you can in the company of strangers in the town centre. We drank pints of bitter and lager but now there is a preference for treble shots et al. I never drank shorts and very few people did.

I still go out to my local pub once a week and there is very rarely any trouble whatsoever and I feel comfortable there. The same sadly cannot be said for town centre pubs . I know not all young people are violent drunks and not all older people are saints and you seem like a very sensible young man but in an alcohol fuelled environment it only takes a couple of idiots to create a tragedy.

Like I said I have theories but like most people I do not have a solution.

[Jonathan Levy]

Well once again I appreciate your views and with regards to the last comment saying you like most people do not have a solution to the problem, there is never going to be a solution that suddenly ends the whole problem. however there are ways in which the problem can be decreased.

I personally don't drink as I am Jewish but I know people such as friends who do drink and they often tell me how easy it is in certain places to get Booze without being asked for age ID in plces such as clubs, shops, and pubs which if that is the case then that is alarming. I'm not saying asking young people for age ID all the time when they try and buy Booze is the solution to the problem because obviously it isn't, but even so if not everyone asks young people for age ID when they try and buy Booze then that is very alarming and needs to somehow be put right.

[P J]

But you have parents buying the booze for underage drinkers. I feel that recently shops , supermarkets and most pubs are trying to crack down on underage drinking. What if you got a year in jail for being caught drinking underage or a ?1000 fine. Would this help do you think?

[disgusted]

Traffic.

A ring road would be very useful.

Where? Warrington is tightly surrounded by motorways, there's no room for a ring road.

[Jonathan Levy]

But you have parents buying the booze for underage drinkers. I feel that recently shops , supermarkets and most pubs are trying to crack down on underage drinking. What if you got a year in jail for being caught drinking underage or a ?1000 fine. Would this help do you think?

 

I actually feel that a ?1000 fine would be more uselful in trying to prevent the offender from underage drinking than a year in Jail. The fine would of course only be useful if it was paid. There are alarming statistics for the amount of unpaid fines and so it needs to be made sure that the fines are paid.

[P J]

So make it if you don't pay your fine , 2 years in jail.

[Jonathan Levy]

So make it if you don't pay your fine , 2 years in jail.

 

Not sure about 2 years, but definately at least a year. To be honest though I feel that would be quite a controversial law if passed.

[P J]

Tough on crime.............

[Jonathan Levy]

Hear, hear. That's the Tory way.

[P J]

not when they were last in power Jonathan

[Jonathan Levy]

Well that was then, this is now and come the next general election when the Tories regain power which hopefully we will do and is looking rather likely at the moment and I don't see that changing, the party hopefully will be tough on crime again although having said that, Cameron is far more interested in the causes of crime compared to previous leaders such as Thatcher but even so.

[P J]

The problem may be if he is too tough on crime he may not have any cabinet left

[observer]

Who are you guys trying to kid?! Fines wouldn't be paid by many, simply because they couldn't afford it and nowadays prison is not a deterent: we even have cases now of folk breaking INTO Prisons to sell drugs. Simple: anyone found drunk and disorderly, gets slung in the local nick for the night, with a sound beating - oops, forgot, can't do that anymore, got to protect their human rights.

[Jonathan Levy]

The problem may be if he is too tough on crime he may not have any cabinet left

 

[Jonathan Levy]

Who are you guys trying to kid?! Fines wouldn't be paid by many, simply because they couldn't afford it and nowadays prison is not a deterent: we even have cases now of folk breaking INTO Prisons to sell drugs. Simple: anyone found drunk and disorderly, gets slung in the local nick for the night, with a sound beating - oops, forgot, can't do that anymore, got to protect their human rights.

 

Well what would you do then about the problem?

[P J]

The museum still has the stocks and an iron maiden Observer. We could reinstate these, what do you think?

[Jonathan Levy]

The museum still has the stocks and an iron maiden Observer. We could reinstate these, what do you think?

 

Can't see it happening personally.

[P J]

Only because fruit and veg are too expensive to chuck at criminals

[Jonathan Levy]

Only because fruit and veg are too expensive to chuck at criminals

 

Haha

[Eagle]

Is this a Monty Python sketch?

[Jonathan Levy]

Is this a Monty Python sketch?

 

Not as far as I'm aware lol.

[Peter T]

Traffic.

A ring road would be very useful.

Where? Warrington is tightly surrounded by motorways, there's no room for a ring road.

 

Half of it is done.

It's South Warrington that needs one building to join up with the North.

[Jonathan Levy]

Traffic.

A ring road would be very useful.

Where? Warrington is tightly surrounded by motorways, there's no room for a ring road.

 

Half of it is done.

It's South Warrington that needs one building to join up with the North.

 

Where would you want the one to join up with the North?