Alcohol talk open to residents

Timaru people are being offered a front row seat at an Alcohol Action NZ conference in Wellington on Tuesday – without having to leave town.

The day-long event is being teleconferenced to venues around New Zealand including Aoraki Polytechnic, and Alcohol Action South Canterbury is encouraging people to sit in on the event.

The national organisation believes a "seismic shift of national thinking is urgently needed on violent crime in New Zealand". The conference will bring together those involved with law and order and public health, including those dealing with the effects of alcohol on a daily basis.

The teleconferencing option is a great opportunity for people to hear what speakers, including Police Commissioner Howard Broad, Principal Youth Court Judge Andrew Becroft and director of the National Addiction Centre Professor Doug Sellman have to say, local Alcohol Action chairman Dennis Veal said.

Local group members Kate Elsen and Alison Gray will be at the teleconferencing venue, room C307, to host the day. It runs from 10.30am to 4.30pm.

While there will be no opportunity to interact with the conference speakers, it was expected those attending the Timaru session would discuss the issues raised.

Tuesday will be the first event hosted by Alcohol Action South Canterbury since it was formed late last year.

How the day was received locally could determine what direction the South Canterbury group took.

If there was sufficient interest the group might look at a public meeting where those dealing with the impact of alcohol on the local community could inform the public of what they were having to cope with.

The group has already approached the district council seeking support, with the issue to be discussed at the next round of meetings.

Alcohol Action is concerned about the way alcohol dominates many social situations and the scale of unhealthy and dangerous drinking in New Zealand.

Nationally, Alcohol Action is pushing for changes to the way alcohol is supplied, marketed, sold and consumed.

- © Fairfax NZ News