Scoop Audio: Liquor Law Reform Zeroes In On Youth

• Scoop Audio:

Justice Minister Simon Power has unveiled the Government’s alcohol law reform package today in a press conference. The package focuses on minimising alcohol-related harm, including crime, disorder, and public health problems.

The package responds to the Law Commission’s review of alcohol laws, said the Minister. “What the Government has heard from the New Zealand public is that the pendulum has swung too far towards relaxation of alcohol laws. Today we are responding to the public’s call for action,” He explained.

But if Power laid the emphasis on the statistics – alcohol is estimated to contribute to 1,000 deaths a year and is implicated in 30 per cent of all police recorded offences – he insisted on New Zealanders' responsibility. “There is a balance to be struck between not unfairly affecting responsible drinkers and dealing with the considerable harm alcohol causes.”

The main target of this new liquor law is youth. The Minister justified this focus with statistics. “Our Alcohol law reform package zeros in on where harm is occurring, particularly on young people”, Power said.

“The government is targeting young people because, as the Law Commission reported, young people suffer a high and disproportionate level of alcohol related harm.” Quoting figures, he reminded that between 2005 and 2004 the proportion of young people reported drinking more than 6 drinks on a typical occasion increased by 11% among drinkers aged 14 to 17 and by 9% among drinkers aged above 18.

The law is intended as a “tool” for parents to control their children's drinking, making it an offence for anyone other than a parent or guardian to provide alcohol to an under-18-year-old without a parent’s or guardian’s consent. And where alcohol is provided to an under-18-year-old, the authorised person will need to ensure the alcohol is supplied in a responsible manner.

Asked about the definition and workability of this consent, the Minister replied details are underway.

“The trick here is to provide parents themselves with a tool to discuss with their children about whether and how they should drink,” the Minister said.

But the aim is also clearly to give parents the ability to say no. “The law would frankly give the ability for people who are hosting parties, who are under pressure from their own children and friends to supply liquor to say 'I'd like to but the law doesn't allow me unless your parents or guardians are happy with that' ”, Power explained.

Other than parental consent, the reform focuses on promotion of alcohol, which will apply to any promotion, including TV advertising and billboards. The reform sets out to strengthen the existing offence of promotion of excessive consumption of alcohol by making it apply to any business selling or promoting alcohol, and defining examples of unacceptable promotions, such as giving away free alcohol. Though questions may arise around the workability of the proposal to penalize the promotion of alcohol “in a way that has special appeal to people under the purchase age”.

Other key features of the package include an increase of the purchase age, 20 years old for off-licenses, remaining 18 years of age for on-licenses.

Apart from this much anticipated measure, the reform also includes less expected measures such as measures on licenses, which would be “harder to get and easier to loose”, the Minister explained. In addition, dairies and convenience stores could loose the permission to sell alcohol and penalties for a range of licence breaches could be increased.

Other proposals include the empowering of local communities to decide on the concentration, location, and hours of alcohol outlets for both on and off-licences in their area through the adoption of local alcohol policies.

No precise scheduled has been announced since the package is still to be discussed in Cabinet, but Power said he hoped to introduce legislation to Parliament in October and plan to pass it into law before the end of this parliamentary term.