One Year On: The Sale & Supply of Alcohol Act 2012

26 March 2015Wellington

What’s working well?Challenges?

Priorities moving forward?

Inspector’s viewTracy Waddington

Tasman District Council

Capacity of the Act to deliver?

• Purpose – to put in place a reasonable system of control over the sale & supply of alcohol that achieves the object

• Object - that the sale, supply and consumption of alcohol is undertaken safely and responsibly and that harm is minimised

What has been shown to have an effect?

• Increase the price• Reduce advertising• Reduce availability

Of these availability is the only element where control is attempted by the Act

• Hours• Location and Density – s105 & s106

• LAP

The positives

• Local and more timely hearing of applications with opposition or objections

• Agency collaboration – continuing to build on good existing relationships

• Fee framework – sharpened focus on compliance• Reduced complacency, renewed focus on harm

prevention• New conversations about harm – MOH raising wider

issue of community impacts

The positives continued…..

• Manager’s Bridging test – refresher training for long term managers

• Immediate impact on Special Licences for large events

• Increased involvement of rest of team• Complete (forced!) review of all processes - systems,

forms, website, information sheets, database, invoicing system…

Key challenges in first year

• Complete (forced!) review of all processes – systems, forms, website, information sheets, database, invoicing system…

Very short timeframe from release of regs to effect Very bad time of year - Christmas, public holidays,

statutory non-working days, peak trading period for tourism towns

• The Act itself – language, organisation of sections, ambiguity…

The challenges continued…

• Establishment of DLC & all related processes• Lack of case law particularly in relation to the new

sections• Massive increase in resources needed – this is our

“new normal”

Dynamics of region’s DLCs

• Top of the South - previously little if any DLA activity• Early days for DLCs as far as public hearings go

Nelson - 1 Tasman - 1 Marlborough - 1

Key learnings from decisions so far…

• Single alcohol areas• DLC processes

What is needed to improve outcomes?

• Amendment to the Act - at least those sections identified by ARLA in annual report

• Central govt to make the changes that will have an effect:

Pricing Advertising More work around supply to minors