Wed 25 Aug 2010 In: New Zealand Daily News View at Wayback View at NDHA
Owners of some of the nation's gay bars have been reading the Government's proposed liquor law reforms with interest. They see some positives in the changes, but have shared concern about masses of people spilling out into the streets at 4am. A 4am closure time for all bars is one of the most talked about proposals for change. Under the new law it would be a blanket national standard, with room for councils to make exceptions. Another hotly debated reform is splitting the purchase age - leaving it at 18 for drinking in bars, and raising it to 20 for buying alcohol off-licences. Grady Elliott from Karangahape Rd's Family Bar says the 4am closure won't impact the venue too much, as it closes between 5am and 5.30am anyway. He believes people will respond by going out earlier. "Instead of them coming out at 11 or 12 o'clock now, they'll look at it and think well if we want a good night out and not just four hours, we'll come out at 10 o'clock or nine o'clock. It's echoed overseas, they come out earlier. Kiwis come out very late and stay out late." Elliott says 4am closing is a good idea, as 5-6am is an "ugly time of the morning", where things often get messy. He says the proposed changes will likely mean a lull, and there won't be so many people still out partying at those hours of the morning. He is however concerned about crowds of people spilling out onto the streets at once. "It will probably cause a bit of kerfuffle with people scratching for taxis - I don't think there'll be enough taxis at 4 o'clock to get rid of people." Elliott says Family supports increasing the age for off-licence purchases to 20, saying too many younger people are drinking too early in the night. "In on-licences, everybody's pretty responsible at 18. You can't get in without ID and as soon as you show a little bit of intoxication you get asked to leave anyway." He says the trouble comes when people can pick up a bottle or two a time for discount prices at liquor stores. "That's when people are sitting out on the road drinking a couple of bottles of RTD and then they try to get into bars." "Overall the changes are a good thing, but I don't think they're going to solve a hell of a lot of problems. You're still going to have binge drinking; you're still going to have people drinking at home. If people want alcohol they're going to get it anyway and it's not a culture that's going to change overnight." Loren Boothby from Karangahape Rd's Kamo Bar and Café says there's no point changing liquor laws if the current laws aren't being enforced. He says in the past five or six months his customers have reported a surge in drunkenness and violence on the road – and he often has to deal with drunken people, who have clearly been over-served at pubs close by. Boothby has no problem with a blanket 4am closing time, as his licence is over by then anyway, but says if it goes ahead it should be a one-rule-for-all standard for all bars, as exceptions leave the door open for political corruption. He says banning people under-20 from buying alcohol from off-licences will not work, as people aged 18 and 19, or even younger, generally have older friends who will buy them drinks. Scott Kennedy and Malcolm Vaughan from Wellington cocktail bar S
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Wednesday, 25th August 2010 - 2:49pm