Ill-Conceived Bill Puts All Licence Holders At Risk: Community Participation Bill will not Achieve Aims

Wellington, August 24

Legitimate, mostly small, businesses that hold an alcohol licence have had their livelihoods threatened today with the passage under urgency of the Sale and Supply of Alcohol (Community Participation) Bill.

“While we have always supported the measured and reasonable improvement of current alcohol laws the legislation passed today has the potential to undermine the value of thousands of businesses around New Zealand,” says Spirits NZ Chief Executive, Robert Brewer.

Robert says the new law has removed the grandparenting rights from the existing Act meaning changes to Local Alcohol Policies can retrospectively impact existing licence holders.

“Under the new law a Council can set limits on how close licenced venues can be to schools, churches and the like and have it apply to all licences rather than just new ones as was the case. This means a well-run venue which has been in a community for 30 years is under threat on licence renewal if changes to local rules suddenly affect it,” says Robert.

“Any business owner will tell you that if your ability to trade can suddenly be affected at the stroke of a pen, even after decades of investment and hard work, then the value of your business will be also be affected.”

Robert also says other changes the new law makes will not make it any easier for communities to become involved in the licencing process.

“If anything the changes will make licencing hearings longer, more technical and more costly,” he says.

“And the removal of the right to appeal a new or revised Local Alcohol Policy not only affects everyone – including the community – it also removes the right of anyone to challenge the legitimacy of what a Council might be proposing - in other words it assumes that Councils’ don’t make mistakes!”

“Instead of focusing on harm reduction – the core purpose of our alcohol laws – the new Act has focused on processes that did not need fixing.”

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