A Toronto doctor, set to appear before the city’s Economic Development Committee on Friday, is expected to present a warning on extending last call in the city.
Dr. Joel Ray, an Emergency Room doctor and contributor to the Inner City Health Research Unit at St. Michael’s Hospital, says recent research shows an uptick in ambulance calls for injuries and assaults in high-density licensed facilities, like bars and restaurants, when drinking hours are extended.
“There’s good data that comes from Australia and Norway that shows that either when you extend or lessen the late night hour for last call, you change the number of assaults in that city,” Ray told AM 640’s Morning Show.
The report is part of another look by the city’s Economic Development and Culture Committee to help struggling city bars and music venues by studying the value of the night-time economy.
The initiative was first brought forward by the Toronto Music Industry Advisory Council in late 2016, which argued that the current 2:00 a.m. cut off time was simply too early for some music sites.
Ray, who points to a Norwegian study that showed a 16 per cent increase in assault cases, says those numbers support the theory that extending bar hours later will lead to significantly more violence, particularly with young men, as patrons are allowed to consume even more alcohol.
“Expanding (last call) will likely increase the bars’ financial gains, but the city will have to incur the costs of more EMS (Emergency Medical Services) calls,” Ray said.
Toronto ER doctor and AM 640 contributor Brett Belchetz generally agrees with the numbers being put forward to the committee but says a later last call might actually eliminate what he calls the “mass crowd” effect.
“The other side of the equation is that we all do know that with an earlier last call you tend have a very large amount people spill out on the streets at the same time,” Belchetz said on the Kelly Cutrara show. “Friday night or Saturday night is a big uptick which starts around 2:00 a.m. with an increased number of trauma injuries coming in to the ER.”
However, Belchetz says they should go with what the data suggests and leave last call where it is.
“From my first-hand experience, I think we have a nice balance as it stands right now,” Belchetz said. “I would be concerned about doing things that might tip things in another direction which could incite more violence in the city.”
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