Liquor changes in store

MICHELLE COOKE

COMMUNITIES may soon be able to influence how many liquor outlets there are, where they are and when they are open.

But Glen Innes Drug and Alcohol Group facilitator Dickie Humphries says the "devil's in the detail" and it is yet to be established just how much say communities will have.

In April, the Law Commission made 153 recommendations that signalled a major overhaul of New Zealand's liquor legislation.

Local Alcohol Plans are one of the 126 recommendations the government announced last week that it would adopt in full or in part.

Others include a split purchase age, restrictions on trading hours and a 5 percent maximum alcohol content in pre-mixed drinks.

The group met National and Labour party members earlier this year to show them the area's liquor outlets and discuss its concerns.

Mr Humphries says the government has listened to communities that were calling for Local Alcohol Plans.

"It's a great principle but the question will be about how that operates," he says.

"Is it going to be that they are just going to consult with the community or will the community be able to sit at the table with the policy makers?"

The government's Alcohol Law Reform report suggests Local Alcohol Plans will be voluntary and will be formed by territorial authorities, with consultation from iwi, hapu, police, medical officers and "any other persons they consider appropriate".

It is unclear as to whether there would be a regional Local Alcohol Plan for Auckland or whether "territorial authorities" would be divided along ward or local board boundaries.

A new plan would be adopted "at least every six years", the report says.

While the government picked up on many of the recommendations, it has been criticised for rejecting an increase on excise tax and tighter restrictions on marketing and advertising.

The Salvation Army, the National Addiction Centre and Alcohol Healthwatch say the government failed to adopt the recommendations that could have had the most impact.

Mr Humphries says the group has called for the government to crack down on advertising and marketing and raise the cost of alcohol.

"Living in a community that is saturated with cheap alcohol, everyone knows the best way to bring consumption down is the price – a lot of evidence supports that."

The government intends to introduce legislation next month to create a Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act to implement its decisions. Public consultation will follow and the law will become operative by the end of next year.

Visit www.justice.govt.nz to read the government's Alcohol Law Reform report.

- © Fairfax NZ News