NSW venue restrictions could kick in earlier

New South Wales Hospitality Minister George Souris has flagged the possibility of amending the Liquor Act to allow the enforcement of conditions on troublesome venues earlier in the evening. 

Round 10 of the Government’s violent venues list, covering the 2012/13 financial year, sees just Merivale’s ivy on level one restrictions, and a further 20 venues on level two with 12-18 incidents recorded.

Souris said Government will be seeking legislative amendments to Schedule IV, to allow for special powers to impose conditions earlier if a venue is considered high-risk before midnight. 

“Currently a number of the scheme’s conditions only apply after midnight, but this amendment would aim to ensure that venues, including country venues that have earlier closing times, can still be effectively targeted with conditions if violent incidents and high-risk trading periods are occurring earlier,” Souris in a statement.

Six licensed venues successfully removed themselves from the list by achieving reductions in alcohol-related violence, but a further 11 made their way into the count, some for the first time. 

“My strong advice to all licensed venues is to regularly review your alcohol and security management plans to minimise the chance of violence on your premises and take all possible steps to ensure responsible service and consumption of alcohol to avoid intoxication,” Souris warned.

Source: The Shout, 2 December 2013