Changing Alcohol Act now a mockery, says Alcohol Healthwatch

Alcohol Healthwatch media release

13 August 2015

Alcohol Healthwatch says Parliament’s response to the proposed changes to The Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act to enable bars to open during the Rugby World Cup is short-sighted, ill-advised and makes a mockery of our alcohol laws.

Director Rebecca Williams says Members of Parliament are kowtowing to the whims of the hospitality sector, rather that maintaining a principled approach to the laws of the land.

She says the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act took more than eight years of negotiation and decision-making to achieve, and that public consultation on the new laws revealed New Zealanders wanted a change in their drinking culture. They supported more restricted trading hours as well as greater restrictions on alcohol marketing, especially that associated with sport.

“The more recent Ministerial Forum on alcohol advertising and sponsorship recommended a ban on alcohol sponsorship of sports,” Ms Williams says.

“Yet here we are less than two years into the laws’ implementation, before we've even evaluated the outcomes of the changes, and Parliament is already considering cutting into the legislation at the whim of the hospitality sector.”

She says this rushed process undermines democracy, and signals that politicians are clearly not serious about addressing alcohol-related harm in New Zealand, despite its $5 billion plus price tag.

“Let’s be clear, this is not about sport, this is about booze. There is currently absolutely nothing to stop all New Zealanders enjoying the rugby if that’s what they wish to do. If bars wish to open longer they can apply for a special licence to do so. This would ensure that they have the necessary conditions in place to ensure patrons are safe.

“Surely we've got more important things for Parliament to address under urgency than twiddling with the very alcohol laws New Zealanders said they wanted.”

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