Press Release
Milan, 24 October 2014
Efus supports actions by local and regional authorities
for a global policy on nightlife
Elected officials members of the European Forum for Urban Security (Efus) have adopted during their Executive Committee meeting in Milan a resolution calling for renewed public policies on nightlife; a working group led by
Efus will support European cities working on this topic.
At night time, the use of public spaces is different. Potential conflicts between the city that sleeps, the city that plays and the city that works have led local and regional authorities to re-think coexistence among city-dwellers. As a network whose purpose is to support local elected officials and their teams, Efus supports cities by allowing them to exchange their practices and experience through a working group on night life. “The objectives of this working group are to build the capacities of cities and help them to draft, implement and evaluate their local policies,” said Guilherme Pinto, president of Efus and Mayor of Matosinhos (Portugal).
The working group on night life will build on the initiatives already implemented by European local and regional authorities member of Efus. It will be structured around initiatives scheduled to be carried out in the forthcoming months by the cities of Paris, Nantes (France), Milan, Florence (Italy) as well as Brussels and Liege (Belgium). Indeed, these cities are already experimenting practices aimed at protecting different categories of the public, which are adapted to night owls, residents and business owners. Discussions and exchange will be based on the expertise produced by Efus over the past 20 years on safety issues linked to the abuse of alcohol and drugs in public spaces[1],during festive events and at night.
Efus emphasises in its resolution the importance of working in partnership in order to draft and conduct cross-cutting policies that involve political, institutional and private stakeholders as well as the voluntary sector. Because of their central position, local and regional authorities are best placed to coordinate action and dialogue among these various representatives. All of these parties are invited to participate in Efus’ working group.
Many activities linked to this working group will take place in the forthcoming months, including:
– A field visit during which representatives from the cities of Liege and Brussels will meet with their counterparts in the municipality of Paris and their partners – late November2014
– Efus will participate in the closing conference of the project Share My City on the prevention of anti-social behaviour in night life areas – 4 and 5 December 2014, Bologna (Italy)
– Programme for the observation and assessment of schemes for the prevention of binge drinking by young people in public spaces. This programme involving eight French cities has received financial support from the French Interministerial Committee on the Fight Against Drugs and Addictive Behaviour (Mission Interministérielle de Lutte contre les Drogues et les Conduites Addictives, MILDCA)
– Programme “New communication strategies for the promotion of health in party scenes”, co-financed by the French National Institute for the Promotion of and Education to Health (InstitutNational de Promotion et d’Education à la Santé, INPES) and led by the French Forum for Urban Security (FFSU)
– Conference: Local authorities and Nightlife: the strategy of the City of Florence (Italy), March 2015
– Conference on Night Life, Nantes (France), Spring 2015
Integral version of the resolution for a global policy on nightlife.
[1] See:
– “Alcohol, partying and night life: European cities call for a balance between health and security”
– “The FFSU and Efus publish Safer Drinking Scenes. Alcohol, City and Nightlife”
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Press contact:
Elsa Fontanille
Tél: + 33 1 40 64 49 00
fontanille@efus.eu
www.efus.eu
Twitter: @efusnews
About the European Forum for Urban Security
Founded in 1987 under the auspices of the Council of Europe, the European Forum for Urban Security (Efus) is the only European non-governmental organisation of local authorities dedicated to urban security. Bringing together 250 local authorities in 16 countries, this network aims to strengthen crime reduction policies and to promote the role of local authorities in national and European institutions. It is run by an executive committee of 32 local authorities elected by members of the network.
