Councils need to focus alcohol policies on problem drinkers

Hospitality New Zealand is urging local councils around the country to take a "careful, evidence-based approach when developing their Local Alcohol Policy (LAP)". President Adam Cunningham said councils needed to target genuine problem drinkers and “avoid penalising people who consume alcohol in moderation and avoid penalising outlets which serve alcohol responsibly.”

“All too often recently we have see draft plans calling for often quite severe restrictions on opening hours for on-licence premises. Cracking down on trading hours may seem appealing but it is no panacea. It is our firm view that these proposed restrictions will not address the alcohol harm issues in our society and may, perversely, make the problem worse by pushing Kiwis out of licenced and regulated premises into uncontrolled drinking environments,” Mr Cunningham said.

The Wellington Branch of Hospitality New Zealand, in conjunction with the Restaurant Association of New Zealand, commissioned Research New Zealand to conduct a wide ranging survey in May 2013 on public perceptions of the Wellington scene. The survey had 1,189 respondents and Mr Cunningham described the results in relation to opening hours as “decisive and compelling”.

87% of respondents said hospitality venues were currently open the hours they liked. If respondents could not get into a bar at 2am, less than a quarter would go home. Most would try to get into another bar (41%), go to a party (13%) or eat in town (13%). Mr Cunningham said “that is not the result supporters of shorter hours are after. Pushing people out at the same time across the city disperses drinkers and makes the situation harder to police. It can create increased tension and aggression at known trouble spots such as takeaways, taxi ranks and public transport facilities when too many people arrive at the same time. Flexible closing times help avoid this situation which is called ‘peak density’.”

Hospitality New Zealand has long argued that regulations should be proportionate to the risk of harm. Currently, only one-third of alcohol is consumed on licenced premises. Most issues are created by excessive consumption of cheap supermarket alcohol at home (pre-loading), in cars or public places (side loading). The Wellington survey showed that 72% ‘pre-loaded’ and 11% admitted to ‘side loading’. These critical issues will not be addressed by restricting the activities of licenced premises which are required to operate in a highly regulated manner and who are responsible for the behaviour of their patrons.

Does Hospitality New Zealand have an agenda? “Of course we do” said Mr Cunningham. “Our agenda is to ensure our industry is open for business for New Zealanders and international tourists, if we stick to the facts we will end up with a continued vibrant hospitality industry AND better management of alcohol in society”.

In conclusion, Mr Cunningham said, “councils need to take a balanced and proportionate approach to their Local Alcohol Policy based on facts, not assertions and emotion. To inform the nationwide discussion, Hospitality New Zealand has produced a document entitled ‘Fact v Fiction’ which sets out the international and local research dispelling many of the key myths around alcohol consumption in New Zealand. We hope that city councils will use the document to ensure their final LAP does not disproportionately impact responsible venues, staff and customers. Instead, they should focus on the small minority of genuine problem drinkers.”

ENDS

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