24 hour bar openings: Good idea or bad idea for Vancouver?

VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) - A group in Seattle is trying to convince their city to allow 24-hour bar openings, saying it would reduce binge drinking along with other alcohol-related problems.  The head of the Centre for Addictions Research in B.C. is warning against any such experiments here.

Bar owners in Seattle want a one year pilot project, but Tim Stockwell with the Centre for Addictions Research at the University of Victoria, says there's no evidence to support the theory that it would curb binge drinking.  "Well, the research says if you extend the trading hours people stay longer and they drink more.  And you get more harm, basically."

Those in favour of the idea say it hasn't caused major problems in cities where 24-hour bar openings are already allowed, including Chicago and New York.