Booze: Time for stronger measures

BY ANTHONY HUBBARD

The government's liquor reforms, to be officially launched tomorrow, will not put an end to the arguments about New Zealand's heavy-drinking culture. Anthony Hubbard reports.

THE GOVERNMENT wants to make a big splash tomorrow with its liquor package. Stung by the backlash over its refusal to lower blood-alcohol limits, it will promote itself as determined to tackle a wide range of alcohol problems.

In particular, it will say it is carrying out many of the reforms recommended by the Law Commission in its major report this year. But the government's package ignores some of the commission's most far-reaching proposals, such as increasing alcohol taxes and moving towards drastic restrictions on advertising and sponsorship.

The government proposes to lift the age at which you can buy liquor at a supermarket or bottle store from 18 to 20, while allowing 18-year-olds to continue to drink in pubs and bars. This waters down the commission's recommendation to raise both ages to 20.

The government wants to restrict opening hours both for pubs and liquor outlets, but not by as much as the commission recommended.

It will "consider" a minimum price scheme for alcohol, a move now being tried overseas in an attempt to end the sale of super-cheap liquor in supermarkets. Critics scorn this as a time-wasting plea for unnecessary "further research", similar to the government's decision not to reduce the blood alcohol limit from 80mg/100ml to 50mg.

Alcohol expert Doug Sellman, professor of psychiatry and addiction medicine at Otago University, told by the Sunday Star-Times of the government's proposals, said they "would not make a significant change to the heavy drinking culture in New Zealand".

The package will strengthen the penalties for supplying liquor to minors, and puts limits on the alcohol content of RTDs, the controversial ready-to-drink spirits mixtures which critics say target the young.

The government is also looking at greater controls on the more excessive forms of alcohol promotion, such as the notorious case at Otago University where a brewer offered trays of free beer to student flats.

And it will, as it has already promised, go ahead with a change to licensing laws to give communities a greater say. Communities in areas such as South Auckland have long complained about the huge number of liquor outlets in their area, and their lack of power to do anything about it. Licensing law changes are likely, it is understood, to make it harder for dairies to get licences.

Sellman says the package would do little about "the basic problem, which is what the Law Commission calls `the unbridled commercialisation of alcohol'. That is what is driving the heavy drinking culture in New Zealand".

Sellman said what was needed was much stronger action, including:

Dropping the blood alcohol limit to 50mg/100ml.

Banning broadcast alcohol advertising and sponsorship of sporting and cultural events.

Banning alcohol sales from supermarkets and dairies.

Introducing a minimum price of $2 per standard drink, to put an end to very cheap alcohol available such as $5 bottles of wine.

The government ruled out alcohol tax increases as soon as the commission produced its final report in May, although this was a central part of the commission's proposals.

Increasing the price of liquor, the commission found, would reduce the harm caused by alcohol. "The widespread availability of cheap alcohol products has encouraged excessive and harmful consumption of alcohol. It is cheap products that are most favoured by heavy, harmful and young drinkers," it said.

The government has now also rejected the commission's proposal to move in the longer term to restrict all alcohol advertising and sponsorship to "objective product information".

THE COMMISSION'S final report expressed concern about "the clearly established link demonstrated by recent research between the advertising of alcohol and the earlier onset of drinking, and heavier drinking by young people who already drink".

This stands in direct contradiction to the industry, which argues that advertising simply persuades customers to switch brands. The industry has long fought against any tighter controls than the present system of self-regulation.

"Placing restrictions on or banning liquor advertising is populist and easy to implement," as Lion Nathan told the justice and electoral select committee last year. But, it added, "there is no evidence that such measures will make any contribution to addressing the problem of youth drinking or risky drinking behaviours among adult New Zealanders."

The government's proposal to have a split purchasing age – which will be decided by a conscience vote in parliament – is based on the idea that it is better to have young people drinking in a "supervised" environment such as a pub. The Law Commission toyed with this idea in its first report last year but ended up rejecting it in May's final report.

It said, in effect, that the so-called "supervised" environments of pubs and bars did not stop people getting drunk.

"Consuming large amounts of alcohol on licensed premises is relatively common, particularly among those aged 18 to 24 years, suggesting an increased risk of acute harm," the commission said.

International and new local research did not support the idea that the risk of injury was lower following drinking on licensed premises, as opposed to elsewhere, it found.

The government will restrict trading hours for on-licences to 8am to 4am (the commission wanted 9am to 4am). This will not affect the Rugby World Cup centres such as Auckland, which lobbied hard to allow all-night drinking for cup patrons. The government has introduced legislation to allow more liberal drinking hours in world cup venues.

Bruce Robertson, chief executive of the Hospitality Association, says in many parts of the country, the on-licence change won't make much difference. The present legislation allows for 24-hour opening hours for pubs and bars "but in a lot of places you can't trade beyond 2 or 3 or 4am anyway", he says.

"The issue for 4am closing is going to be in metropolitan CBDs, the night, dance and club venues. It's going to be an issue for those people who want to watch the Springboks versus All Blacks in a bar – this weekend that match starts at 3am so you won't see the end of it. And if you want to have a champagne breakfast starting at 7.30, no champagne, sorry."

The package also restricts off-licence trading hours to 7am to 11pm (the commission wanted 9am to 10pm). The change would have little impact, Roberston said. Most off-licences are already shut by 11pm. Few supermarkets traded later than that, he said.

The government will strengthen the rules against providing alcohol to minors, although the details are not known. The commission wanted a law requiring anyone supplying liquor to a minor to get permission first from the young person's parent or guardian.

Parents were "angered by their inability to prevent other people supplying their child with alcohol without their supervision and often with little or no adult permission", the commission said. Those who failed to get parental approval, or who then supplied liquor "in an irresponsible manner" could be fined up to $5000.

The package will look to stop promotion of excessive drinking in off-licences. The commission noted that the law prevented a pub or other on-licence from putting a sign outside saying, "Why study for exams when you can get drunk with your mates?"

But the law didn't apply to off-licences.

"A sign outside an off-licence inviting students to take a cheap 12-pack home to get drunk is just as irresponsible as a sign inviting students to get drunk on the premises."

- © Fairfax NZ News