Recommendations to free up South Australia’s liquor laws
A review of South Australia’s liquor laws has recommended big changes.
These included allowing patrons in restaurants to buy alcohol without ordering food and giving the green light for small bars to open in North Adelaide.
Other recommendations include removing restrictions that prevent the sale of alcohol on Christmas Day and Good Friday, clearer controls on supplying liquor to teenagers at such events as school formal after-parties, restructuring liquor licencing costs, simplifying liquor licence categories and tougher penalties for breaching liquor licensing rules.
All these are part of the 129 recommendations made by former Supreme Court Justice Tim Anderson.
He has been reviewing the Liquor Licensing Act since November.
The state government has not yet indicated which way it will go but some of the changes are likely to attract some debate.
For example, the state branch of the Master Builders Association put in a state budget submission requesting changes that would expand small bar licences to the suburbs.
This had some level of support from Adelaide Lord Mayor Martin Haese who said that while the council did not have a formal position, it would support extending licences “particularly to the likes of O’Connell Street and Melbourne Street, which I think it would suit very well”.
On the other hand, Adelaide City Councillor Anne Moran pointed out that O’Connell Street was a residential area.
“It’s a very delicate interface there because it is so close (to houses) but then, on the plus side, small bars don’t tend to cause any trouble,” Councillor Moran told the Adelaide Advertiser. “We have had small bars before and there’s (still) empty shops so there’s plenty of room.”
In the lead up to the review, the Australian Hotels Association launched a campaign warning the government it had to protect the 26,250 people working in pubs and clubs, representing about three per cent of South Australia’s workforce.
Leon Gettler, July 7th 2016
