‘Ban party pooper thugs for five years’

DISMAYED Surfers Paradise hospitality lobby head Tim Martin is calling for severe punishments for all of Sunday’s ugly brawl participants.

More than 30 ended up punching on in a Glitter Strip dust-up in Cavill Mall bar Beer Garden soon after the Floyd Mayweather-Conor McGregor fight ended in the early afternoon.

Bloody scenes spilt out onto Cavill Mall amid families as police descended and paramedics wheeled away the injured.

Mr Martin, who heads the Surfers Paradise Licensed Venues Association and Surfers Safe Night Out Precinct group, called on authorities to “throw the book” at participants in the brawl.

“I would like to see everyone involved banned from venues for a very long time,” he said. “That is how we start getting on top of things.

“We are far too lenient. It’s all well and good putting more restrictions on licensed premises but how about putting restrictions on people doing it.

“Be harsh – you can’t go to a licensed venue for five years if you hit someone.”

Since last month, Safe Night Out Precinct venues opening past midnight are required to scan patron IDs from 10pm to weed out those with court or police imposed bar bans. Mr Martin said it was working well despite a few teething issues.

The Beer Garden drama put two people in hospital and a man was allegedly glassed and then stabbed in the neck. It descended into a wild brawl with other patrons jumping on tables to escape being caught up in it.

Mr Martin said a ban on glass bottles or drinking vessels wasn’t the answer.

“I don’t want to go out somewhere and pay $10 and then have to drink out of a plastic cup because some other idiot can’t control themselves.

“It’s embarrassing enough for someone to come into a venue and drink out of a polyester cup when they are drinking a $500 bottle of Dom Perignon.”