Alcohol reforms in the Northern Territory (NT) have included a rewrite of the Northern Territory of Australia Liquor Act 1978 (the Act).
FARE and the People’s Alcohol Action Coalition (PAAC) welcomed the opportunity to provide comment on the Exposure Draft of the Liquor Bill 2019 (the Bill) in April. A new strong Liquor Act is a pivotal piece of legislation to continue stopping the harms from alcohol and to successfully implement the Riley Review reforms in the NT.
The Exposure Draft provided a good foundation for the new Liquor Bill, but some areas required further attention. FARE and PAAC provided 50 recommendations in their joint submission to strengthen the Bill and provide a strong regulatory framework for the future.
Recommendations
- Amend s49 (2) to require that all licence applicants notify residents, business and other relevant parties, including schools, health services, and vulnerable groups within the primary trade area of a licence application.
- Amend s48 (4) to include a requirement for the Director to advise other relevant agencies or government bodies, in addition to notifying the Police Commissioner, CEO of the Agency administering the Health Act and the relevant Local Government.
- Update the Licensing NT webpage to include clear information on the liquor licensing process, including how the community can make objections and complaints.
- Establish a free digital notification service to which community members may subscribe and which will provide regular updates about the lodgement and progress of liquor licence applications.
- Reinstate the 30 day time period currently allowed under the Liquor Act 1978 to lodge an objection and apply this to low-risk applications, and mandate a longer objection period for higher risk licences, to allow sufficient time for community objectors to compile evidence and respond.
- Amend s53(1) to allow objections to be made against applications to transfer liquor licences from a licensee to another person or entity.
- Extend s53(2) to allow additional grounds for objection including whether the applicant is considered fit and proper to hold a licence, government priorities to reduce alcohol harm, and other factors agreed by the Commission.
- Provide greater clarity in s53 so that peak bodies, public health groups and other bodies concerned about community safety and well-being are eligible to object.
- Insert a requirement for the Commission to make the completed application available to the public within 5 days of the publication of the notice for the licence application, and extend the timeframe to object to a minimum of 30 days, with additional time allowed for complex applications, at the discretion of the Commission, to allow sufficient time for applicants to be able to review the application.
- An independent Community Defender’s Office should be established to support communities in licensing matters.
