Well I didn't know the provenance of the writers, but I'd consider the lollipop article mention as some form of corroboration.
I don't care if it saves a thousand drunk/not-drunk women or Eddie Izzard breaking their ankles, it simply is not the job of the police. I much prefer the way things are done in the States, for example in Des Moines, Iowa there's the party bus that takes pub-goers bar-hopping. It's not a cop-initiative.
Oh, hang on, I do care about Eddie Izzard after all!
On top of that, that's a Tax Payers Alliance article. I wouldn't trust them as far as I could throw them.