9 November 2012

Survey gauges local views on alcohol

The Hutt Valley’s mayors are encouraging their communities to take part in a joint survey on alcohol use.

Hutt City Mayor Ray Wallace and Upper Hutt City Mayor Wayne Guppy say the month-long survey, which started today, asks for people’s views on alcohol consumption, where liquor can be sold or is banned, and what impact they believe alcohol has on society.

“Alcohol is something that affects most of us, regardless of whether we drink,” says Mayor Wallace. “We want to understand what our communities think about issues such as liquor licensing, and this survey will help us do that,” adds Mayor Guppy.

The survey is being run to ensure that both Councils are fully informed by their respective communities as they consider the implications of the Alcohol Reform Bill, which is currently before Parliament.

The Bill aims to put in place a new system of control over the sale and supply of alcohol, and gives local authorities powers to deal with local licensing matters. For the first time, local authorities will have the ability to determine the number, location and hours of operation for licensed premises.

Mayors Guppy and Wallace are encouraging everyone to have their say. “This is a chance to gather community feedback about alcohol issues, so the more people who take part in the survey the better.”

Police Area Commander for Hutt Valley, Inspector Mike Hill says the survey will help agencies like the Police that are involved in reducing alcohol-related crime, liquor licensing activities, crime prevention and community safety.

“Information from this survey will enable us to make to make the community safer and will better represent the community view when decisions are made on licensing applications.”

Go to www.surveymonkey.com/s/HVAlcoholSurvey to complete the survey, before 14 December. Hard copies will also be available at all libraries in the Hutt Valley.

ENDS

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Arguably Reassuring: Inspector-General Finds GCSB "Arguably" Legal

Of the 88 individuals:

• 15 cases involving 22 individuals did not have any information intercepted by GCSB.

• another four cases involving five individuals were the subjects of a New Zealand Security Intelligence Service warrant and the GCSB assisted in the execution of the warrants. The Inspector-General is of the view that there were arguably no breaches and the law is unclear.

• the Bureau only provided technical assistance which did not involve interception of communications, involving three of the individuals, so no breach occurred.

• the remaining cases involved the collection of metadata, and the Inspector-General formed the view that there had arguably been no breach, noting once again that the law is unclear.
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