COLUMN: Respect the rights of your neighbours

What annoys one person might be perfectly acceptable to another but there's a big difference between respectful and nuisance behaviour '“ and most of us know when this boundary is crossed.

Summer can be a busy time for police and emergency services with incidents of antisocial behaviour, disorder and drink-fuelled violence typically spiking during the warmer months. Too much alcohol can make us lose our inhibitions and behave in a way that is totally out of character – and often this crosses the line into disrespectful or even criminal behaviour. There can be few worse hangovers than those which accompany waking up in a police cell.

As the barbecue season gets underway and schools close their doors for the holidays, our Blue Light workers really are depending on us to respect the rights of our neighbours, fellow partygoers and revellers and to make sensible decisions so we can enjoy a safe and trouble-free summer. It’s about using common sense but what is equally important is tolerance.