Proposals Fail To Address Key Issues

The New Zealand Institute of Liquor Licensing Inspectors (NZILLI) is also disappointed that the recently announced proposals to address youth drinking have not tackled some of the key issues.

NZILLI hoped the review would recommend strong legislative controls around the sale and supply of liquor to minors and in particular require that all liquor supplied to minors by parents was consumed under their direct supervision.

NZILLI President, Murray Clearwater, says “some of the key issues commented on in discussions with the Youth Access To Alcohol Steering Group members were the permissive attitudes by parents and unsupervised consumption of liquor by minors. Another was the general availability of cheap, high alcohol content, liquor that is packaged and appears to be designed for the youth market.

These issues have not been addressed in the proposals.

The increasing availability and advertising of alcohol plays a significant role in the access to alcohol by minors. The proposal to leave advertising largely self-regulated will maintains the status quo.

NZILLI fully supports the zero tolerance to blood alcohol content but believe it should be for all drivers under the age of 20 years.

We also support the proposal to make it an offence for ‘other persons’ to supply alcohol to minors. This is a loop hole in the current law and needs to be closed. Similarly the proposal to remove the defence of reasonable belief that a person is over the age of 18 is a positive move. NZILLI believes it should be mandatory to produce ID when purchasing liquor.

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