Pages tagged "Types of licences"

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Posted in 1. Alcohol in public places

Many communities are taking action to address drinking in public places. Here's how you can take action.

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Posted in 1. Alcohol in public places

Councils develop alcohol bans, Police enforce them

Councils have the powers to address concerns about disorderly behaviour and criminal offending that arises from alcohol being consumed in public places.

They can develop Alcohol Control bylaws (also known as alcohol/liquor bans or alcohol-free zones). These specify the time and day when the consumption and possession of alcohol in the public place is prohibited. For the legislation relevant to these bylaws please click here.

These bylaws may be permanent (until the bylaw is reviewed) or temporary (to cover an event or particular time period).

For example, an Alcohol Ban may cover a town centre, a park or public reserve, or a car park, and can be 24/7 or for certain times of day/night.  A ban can also be put in place for a special event like a concert or other public event such as sport/game.

It is necessary for the Council to consult with its residents when creating such a bylaw.

Breaches of alcohol bans

The Police are the agency with the authority to enforce alcohol bans. They are given powers of arrest, search and seizure in relation to breaches of alcohol bans.

Breaches are dealt with by way of infringement notices – i.e. a fine of $250. This generally means that issues can be dealt with promptly. However, if there are other matters of concern to the Police other responses may be pursued. For more information on Police powers in relation to alcohol bans, please click here.

Consumption of alcohol by minors in a public place

The Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012 also addresses the consumption of alcohol in public places. The Act makes is an offence for those under 18 years (unaccompanied by their legal parent or guardian) to consume alcohol in a public place, please visit the Police website for more information. This offence is subject to a $200 fine.

Working together to create alcohol-free spaces

It is also possible to take community action to create spaces alcohol-free without using an Alcohol Control Bylaw. The owners of the spaces can be asked that no alcohol is brought into or consumed in the space.

Case for Change

Posted in 1. Alcohol in public places

Drinking in public places is an important setting to take action.

Many people who go on to commit offences have been consuming alcohol in public places.

Public places may also be a popular setting for young people to drink. They can also be used as places to “pre-load” before entering licensed premises or “side-load” between visits to different bars and clubs.

Public place drinking makes people feel unsafe in their communities and has significant costs to Councils through litter, vandalism and other disorderly behaviour.

Alcohol consumption (and anti-social behaviour) can be normalised when we see it occurring in our everyday settings.

Alcohol bans/bylaws in public places can be useful to address harm in your community.

Public place drinking

Drinking in public places is associated with significant harm and disorder and is an important setting to take action [3].

Police data in 2007/08 identified public places to be the last place for drinking in 18% of alleged offenders who drank alcohol before their offending (14,838 apprehensions) [3]. Almost half (47%) of the alleged offenders were assessed as moderately affected by alcohol and 13% were extremely affected by alcohol at the time of arrest [3]. In other words, around 60% of offenders were assessed at the higher end of intoxication [3].

Given that it is illegal for young people to drink within licensed premises (except when accompanied by their parent/guardian), public places may be a popular setting for young people to drink [4]. Given the unsupervised nature of this drinking, it presents a significant risk of harm.

Pre-loading and side-loading in public places

Drinking in public places may also be preferred for drinkers who wish to “pre-load” before entering licensed premises. This means that they consume alcohol prior to entering a bar or night club, for example.

Public places may also be used to “side-load”, whereby off-licence alcohol is consumed between visits to different on-licence bars and clubs. Many young people describe the reasons for pre-loading being 1) wanting to get drunk and 2) because off-licence prices are cheaper than the price of alcohol in bars.

In a study of 25 countries, New Zealanders were found to have the 4th-highest prevalence of pre-loading [5]. To address this, we need strategies which increase the price of alcohol at off-licences.

Public place drinking makes people feel unsafe in their communities

Drinking in public places contributes to people feeling unsafe about where they live, work or play. In a New Zealand Quality of Life Survey conducted in 2014 across 6 major cities, over 66% of residents considered alcohol to be a problem in their local areas [4]. Part of these perceptions may be due to public place drinking.

There are also significant costs to councils and ratepayers associated with public drinking, due to the costs resulting from litter, vandalism and other disorderly behaviour. Cleaning up in CBD areas can come at a considerable cost in some towns and cities [3].

Normalisation of drinking (and violence)

Finally, we should be concerned about the normalisation of alcohol use when it is consumed in public. Just like smoking, alcohol consumption can be normalised when we see it occurring in our everyday settings. This includes the great outdoors (e.g. national parks) and large public events (e.g. music festivals). Large events that sell alcohol present additional risks through exposing young people to drinking as well as exposing them to alcohol advertising and marketing (through sponsorship and alcohol products).

Another issue relating to alcohol-related problems in public areas is the normalisation of anti-social behaviour. It is suggested that when people see alcohol-related violence in night-time areas, not only does it incite fear but it may lead to drinker’s expectations that violence goes hand in hand with drinking [6]. This may result in further violence in night-time areas.

Addressing alcohol use in public places through liquor bylaws

Policies that restrict alcohol use at specific events or locations have the potential to affect public place drinking [7]. To reduce harm, we need to address drinking which is time- and occasion specific, as well public drinking which occurs through casual gatherings.

Time- and occasion-specific drinking is that which is associated with specific situations or events where there are likely to be large congregations of people e.g. sport events, concerts or specific holiday times [8].Casual gatherings are non-specific events where people drink in public places, carrying a high risk of alcohol-related violence, vandalism and public disorders [8].

Alcohol bylaws can be especially useful to restrict this type of drinking and therefore reduce harm. To ensure that alcohol bans/bylaws in public places are effective, stakeholders and communities need to work together. Extensive research has found that community partnerships involving police, local authorities, health agencies, community representatives and liquor liaison groups are seen to enhance the effectiveness of liquor bans [9,10]. Such partnerships can improve communication and information-sharing and benefit policing [9,10].

A case study of public place bylaws in New Zealand [9] found that breaches of alcohol/liquor bans were often resolved by way of warnings or cautions, instead of arrests and prosecutions. As such, the number of reported prosecutions relating to breach offences can be low. People are often found to comply with an officer’s warning [9].

There is a lack of high quality studies relating to whether alcohol bans reduce harm. A case-study which explored the implementation of a liquor ban at Piha beach (a popular beach in Auckland) found that there was a decline in police call-outs for alcohol-related incidents and motor vehicles crashes [11]. Liquor bans in the Auckland CBD have also been associated with increased perceptions of safety [12]. However, it must be noted that the effectiveness of alcohol bans is closely linked to the level of police enforcement, as found in Wellington City [13].

Click here to go to the References page 

Case Study

Posted in 1. Object to an off-licence application

Currently under development. If you would like to share your experience of taking action in this area, please contact us at Alcohol Healthwatch. We would love to hear from you and include your community action in ActionPoint. 

Take Action

Posted in 1. Object to an off-licence application

This section will guide you through the process of making an objection to the issue or renewal of an off-licence in your community.

Posted in 1. Object to an off-licence application

A licence must be obtained to sell alcohol

Anyone who wishes to sell or supply alcohol to be consumed off-premise must apply for an off-licence from the local council.

Licence applications must be publicly notified

An off-licence application must be publicly notified at the premises and either in the local paper or designated website. Check with your local council for their requirements. 

You will need to check the website or look out for notices in the local newspapers or local area to be aware of licence applications. Please note that some premises may put the public notice somewhere that may not be noticeable to the public (e.g. the notice may be posted on somewhere that is far from the entrance).

Three agencies make inquiries into the application

Once an application is made, Council licensing inspectors, Public Health officers, and Police licensing officers commence their investigations in relation to the application. Other agencies can also look into the application (e.g. Fire Service).

Council licensing inspectors, Police, and Health must inquire into all off-licence applications. If the Police and/or Health authorities wish to oppose the application, they must send their report to the Licensing Committee within 15 working days (note - working days do not include public holidays but do include regional anniversary days) after receiving the application file from the Council.

The Council is not required to report within 15 working days - they may take longer.

The community can object to an application

 You can make an objection to the application if you have a “greater interest” than the public generally.

A person with ‘greater interest’ means you could be living or working near (e.g. within 1km) the proposed or existing premises, or you’re a member of a Board of Trustees of a school or Marae near the premises. You can object to both new licences and renewals of licences.

Please note that your name and contact details need to be provided in your objection. Your objection and contact details are given to the applicant. The applicant may seek to amend their application based on your objections (e.g. by reducing their trading hours) or they may use your objection to prepare a response at a public hearing.

You can also object to a licence as a community group.  Your objection letter can act as a petition, gathering signatures from people who have a greater interest than the public generally. If you choose this method, it is important to include in the petition the name and address of a spokesperson or contact person, including an email address. Each objector in the petition must include their name and address clearly, as well as their signature.

Alternatively, you could create an objection letter template which you can print off and distribute throughout the local community.

You will have 15 working days (note - working days do not include public holidays but do include regional anniversary days) to lodge an objection or petition against an off-licence from the date of the first notification (this could be an online notice or date published in a local newspaper, whichever is first).

Once the list of objectors is finalised and given to all three agencies, some applicants (and their agents) may invite objectors to a meeting to discuss their concerns. If you feel uncomfortable doing this, do not feel pressured to attend.

Although your contact details are not published, if you take part in the public hearing your name and objection will become public record.

Objections can only relate to specified criteria

There are a range of criteria that are used in decisions whether or not to grant a licence. The criteria are: 

  • the object of the Act (the harm caused by the excessive or inappropriate consumption of alcohol should be minimised)
  • the suitability of the applicant
  • any relevant local alcohol policy
  • the days on which and the hours during which the applicant proposes to sell alcohol:
  • the design and layout of any proposed premises:
  • whether the applicant is engaged in, or proposes on the premises to engage in, the sale of goods other than alcohol, low-alcohol refreshments, non-alcoholic refreshments, and food, and if so, which goods:
  • whether the applicant is engaged in, or proposes on the premises to engage in, the provision of services other than those directly related to the sale of alcohol, low-alcohol refreshments, non-alcoholic refreshments, and food, and if so, which services:
  • whether (in its opinion) the amenity and good order of the locality would be likely to be reduced, to more than a minor extent, by the effects of the issue of the licence:
    • whether (in its opinion) the amenity and good order of the locality are already so badly affected by the effects of the issue of existing licences that—
    • they would be unlikely to be reduced further (or would be likely to be reduced further to only a minor extent) by the effects of the issue of the licence; but
    • it is nevertheless desirable not to issue any further licences: 

For more specific and detailed information on the criteria as set out in the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, please click here:

SECTIONS OF THE LAW RELEVANT TO OBJECTING TO A LIQUOR LICENCE APPLICATION

Many community members focus their objections on the trading hours, impact on amenity and good order, suitability of the applicant and object of the Act. But you can use any of the above criteria.  You can only focus your objection in relation to the above criteria.

What is amenity and good order?

In relation to amenity and good order, the Act requires that the Licensing Committee must have regard to the following matters (as they relate to the locality):

  • current, and possible future, noise levels
  • current, and possible future, levels of nuisance and vandalism
  • the number of premises for which licences of the kind concerned are already held

Other considerations in relation to amenity and good order are the extent to which the following purposes are compatible:

  • the purposes for which land near the premises concerned is used:
  • the purposes for which those premises will be used if the licence is issued.

If the application is for a licence renewal, the Licensing Committee must have regard to:

  • current, and possible future, noise levels
  • current, and possible future, levels of nuisance and vandalism.

Seeking to have conditions included on the licence

It may be that you do not object to the granting of a licence, but object to the trading hours that are proposed. Or perhaps you would like some conditions attached to the licence. This is absolutely fine - make it clear in your objection letter that this is the case and what hours or conditions you would prefer.

Examples of conditions you might seek for an off-licence might include:

  • Prohibiting the sale of single alcoholic beverages
  • Requiring off-licences to close between 3-4pm (to protect children from exposure to alcohol advertising when children leave school)
  • Prohibiting the sale of certain types of products
  • Prohibiting sales to persons in school uniforms
  • Not displaying RTDs at the principal entrance to the store or within three metres of front windows
  • Limiting external advertising to one sign identifying the trading name of the premises
  • Windows to be clear and free from brand advertising
  • no portable signage such as flags or sandwich boards

If conditions are not to be placed on a licence, will the licensee sign an undertaking?

Sometimes it can be difficult to have conditions imposed on the licence - but this doesn't mean that you can't discuss these with the applicant and encourage them to sign an undertaking instead.

An undertaking is a formal written statement (can even be in an email) that the applicant promises to adhere to certain requirements.

For example, the applicant could agree that they:

  • won't dispose of bottles and trash outside the premises between x hour and x hour
  • truck or van deliveries will not occur between x hour and x hour
  • private rubbish contractor collections will only occur as per the agreed delivery times noted above.
  • nominated residents and the licensee will communicate about and / or resolve any issues in a responsible manner.

If there are breaches to these undertakings, they can be used when the licence comes up for renewal. It is important that all breaches are recorded in an incident log.

Objections are processed by the local Council licensing inspector

Send your objection to your local Council. ​Email is usually the best form of communication.

The Council should write to you to acknowledge your objection. The inspector will assess your objection and determine if you meet the criteria for having a “greater interest” than the public generally and that your objection relates to the specified criteria.

Community objections proceed to a public hearing

If you object, the District Licensing Committee (DLC) will hold a public hearing. It is very important that you attend this hearing if you want to make your objection count. Objections from persons who do not attend the hearing are unfortunately given little weight.

The file of reports from the three agencies, together with community objections, is forwarded to the Hearings Advisor for the DLC.

The date, time, and location of the hearing will be sent to you from the Hearings Team. They will inform you of the process and deadlines to submit further evidence (if you wish to present any).   

By law, the DLC must give at least 10 working days' notice of the public hearing to all parties. If your objection is in the form of a petition, they will contact the spokesperson. 

Information about upcoming hearing dates may be available on the website of each Council.

Case for Change

Posted in 1. Object to an off-licence application

Off-licences are premises where alcohol can be purchased for consumption off the premises, for example a bottle store, supermarket/grocery store, remote seller.

The more that alcohol is available in a community, the more likely the community will experience alcohol-related harm. High numbers of alcohol outlets and late trading hours lead to a higher likelihood of violence, drink driving, and heavy adolescent drinking. More outlets often means lower prices, which means more harm.

Communities can reduce alcohol-related harm by influencing the number, location, and trading hours of off-licences. Communities can do this by having their say on their local alcohol policy, or by making objections to licence applications (new and renewal) through their local District Licensing Committee.

Availability of alcohol in a community

The more that alcohol is available in a community, the higher the levels of harm it is likely to experience.

Availability of alcohol can be reduced by:

  • limiting the number of places that sell alcohol
  • reducing the number of hours that a licensed premises is open
  • placing conditions on a liquor licence

This section explains why each of these strategies is important.

Limiting the number of places that sell alcohol

The more alcohol outlets in an area, the more hazardous drinking occurs, and therefore more harm.

When a community has a high number of places that sell alcohol (licensed premises), it is more likely that community will experience alcohol-related harms such as violence, assaults, drink driving, child maltreatment, and heavy drinking among adolescents.

Competition is high when there are many places that sell alcohol. This means that they stay open for longer to catch every sale and reduce their prices.  Low prices are linked to higher alcohol harm.

Having a high number of places that sell alcohol may also lower the amenity and good order in a community - this is because heavy drinkers may cause violence, street disturbance, litter, vomit, property damage, etc. Premises may also attract people to an area, whether or not they drink in the premises.

In New Zealand, there are more places that sell alcohol in low income communities [1]. 

Young Māori and Pacific males (i.e. 18-24 years) are more negatively impacted by living in close proximity to places that sell alcohol. Young European females are most affected by living in communities with a high number of places that sell alcohol [2]. 

Reducing the hours that a licensed premises is open

In New Zealand, the number of hours that a licensed premises is open is determined by our alcohol laws - the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012.

If a local Council has not yet adopted a Local Alcohol Policy, then the maximum national trading hours for off-licences (supermarkets, grocery stores, bottle stores) are 7am to 11pm.

These are maximum trading hours so it doesn’t mean that a premises will be allowed to open for these hours. Their licence will specify times that they are able to sell alcohol.

There are also special requirements relating to certain public holidays (no trading on Good Friday, Easter Sunday, Anzac Day before 1pm, and Christmas Day).  Click here to read more. 

You can influence the trading hours of licensed premises in your community by objecting to licence applications.

OPENING HOURS

Having later opening hours can reduce the exposure of alcohol (and its advertising) to children on their journey from home to school. This suggests that it would be ideal if all off-licences remained closed until after 9am or 10am, once children have made their way to school. It would also be useful for them to close when children leave school (i.e. between 3 to 4pm).

Research has documented the association between exposure to alcohol advertising around schools and increased intentions to use alcohol among very young adolescents [6]. Exposure to in-store displays of alcohol have also been found to increase the likelihood of drinking [7].

Social service providers in New Zealand have been concerned about the negative impact of early opening hours on persons with alcohol dependence. A later opening hour may further assist those who have made a decision to reduce their alcohol intake and support those in recovery.

CLOSING HOURS

In New Zealand, drinkers who purchased alcohol from off-licences after 10pm were found to be twice as likely to be heavy drinkers compared to those who purchased alcohol from an off-licence before 10pm [8].

In New Zealand, approximately 75% of all alcohol is sold from off-licences (43% from bottle stores, 32% from supermarkets) [9]. Restricting off-licence supply of alcohol is especially important in reducing alcohol-related harm.

Placing conditions on liquor licences

The Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012 allows licensing decision makers to place conditions on liquor licences. Some conditions are compulsory, for example:

  • Stating the days and hours during which alcohol may be sold
  • Single alcohol areas in supermarkets and grocery stores – click here for more information

In addition, licensing decision makers have the discretion to add further conditions (over and above the compulsory conditions) to the licence to minimise alcohol-related harm associated with the individual premises.

Conditions may include (but are not limited to):

  • Prohibiting the sale of single alcoholic beverages
  • Requiring off-licences to close between 3-4pm (to protect children from exposure to alcohol advertising when children leave school)
  • Prohibiting the sale of certain types of products
  • Prohibiting sales to persons in school uniforms
  • Not displaying RTDs at the principal entrance to the store or within three metres of front windows
  • Limiting external advertising to one sign identifying the trading name of the premises
  • Windows to be clear and free from brand advertising
  • no portable signage such as flags or sandwich boards

Research shows that these types of approaches may be limited in their effectiveness if not accompanied by stronger evidence-based restrictions to the availability of alcohol [10]. Research also shows that discretionary conditions are more effective if they are applied in a consistent manner [10]. 

SINGLE SALES OF ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES

Prohibiting the sale of single alcoholic serves (also known as single sales) is backed up by strong evidence. Research has shown links between alcohol outlets that sell single alcohol serves to increased alcohol-related violence and crime [11].

When single sales were prohibited, alcohol-related ambulance attendances among 15 to 24 year olds decreased [12].

Single units of alcohol are likely to be favoured by those who are heavy drinkers and also price sensitive; namely adolescents and young adults, and those with an alcohol dependence. Many licensees in New Zealand have already signed an undertaking not to offer for sale any single alcoholic beverages from their premises.

A suitable discretionary condition may therefore be:

The licensee must not sell single units of:

  1. Beer or ready to drink spirits (RTDs) in bottles, cans, or containers 440mls or less in volume may occur except for craft beer; and
  2. Shots or pre mixed shots.

NEW ALCOHOLIC PRODUCTS

Conditions may also be sought to address new and innovative alcohol products being introduced to the retail market. Some of these products (e.g. alcohol sachets, alcoholic ice-blocks) can very dangerous for members of the public to consume. As such, conditions may be placed to restrict their sale.