Jim Anderton's Progressives The Strength To Care

INTRODUCTION

I am under no illusion about the challenge involved if we are to seriously reduce the harm caused by alcohol.

But doing nothing is not an option. Alcohol is by far the most damaging drug in the country. It causes between $2-$3 billion dollars worth of economic and social harm each year.

I welcome this issues paper and the unique opportunity it gives us to reform the legal framework in which alcohol is sold, advertised and promoted. It gives us a chance today to do more to protect New Zealanders from the harm caused by the abuse of alcohol.

In Part One I outline the context in which I make this submission, and also call on the Law Commission to do more in its final recommendations to guide law makers on how to further curb alcohol advertising, particularly to the most vulnerable New Zealanders - the young. I would like to see more options put forward by the Law Commission on how we can greatly reduce the availability of alcohol to young people.

In Part Two I have given my opinions and made comments on every option put forward in the Law Commission’s paper, ‘Alcohol in our Lives’.


PART ONE
I urge the Law Commission to help change the tide of New Zealand’s harmful drinking culture, and welcome the options put forward in this issues paper. But I believe that more options need to be explored to reduce the availability of alcohol to young New Zealanders; and more needs to be done to curb the advertising of alcohol.

What we need is a culture change.

Less than ten people died last year as a result of using the drug commonly known as ‘P’.

Twenty people died from swine flu this year.

1000 people die from alcohol related problems each year.

These statistics put into perspective the enormity of the challenge we are facing.

Every day we are presented with disturbing evidence of the social deterioration and crime caused by the excessive consumption of alcohol.

All Black’s games and the Black Caps Summer Cricket series drip in alcohol promotion. Yet we act surprised when leading sportsmen like cricketer, Jesse Ryder and rugby star, Jimmy Cowan get into trouble for drinking too much.

A leading alcohol researcher in the UK said that: “Nations, like people, can develop a pathological pattern of alcohol misuse”. That’s what has happened in New Zealand. We already had a drinking culture, but the easy availability of alcohol, the lowering of the drinking age, and the influence of the alcohol industry on alcohol-control policy has turned that culture into a pathological problem.



Changes in law need to assist us in also changing the culture of heavy drinking in New Zealand. I would like to see more analysis done on how each option put forward in this issues paper is likely to help change the behaviour of New Zealanders. When the law was changed to make it compulsory to wear a seat belt for example, the law was only successful when accompanied by a long and targeted marketing campaign.

Reducing the availability of alcohol to young people, and restricting the advertising of alcohol will both have a positive and profound impact on the culture of binge drinking.

The alcohol industry actively markets alcohol to young people. This must be stopped.

Every advertisement seen by a young person (15-24 years) increases the number of drinks they consume by 1%. They become customers for life.

The alcohol industry makes its profits by encouraging heavy drinking. So if we are serious about curbing the availability of alcohol to young people, and the promotion of alcohol to youth, then we will have to place legal restrictions on the industry.

ALAC advises the government on policy that affects the availability of alcohol, but there is no clear direction that they should not have a representative from the alcohol industry on the board. I would like to see this change. It makes no sense to allow a representative from the alcohol industry sit on a body designed to limit the industries ability to sell and promote its business.

We have a national alcohol crisis. It is imperative that we deal with New Zealand’s culture of heavy drinking if any legal changes are to be effective.

Currently, $200,000 per day is spent on marketing and advertising alcohol.

About half the marketing is spent on sponsorship.

I would like to see the alcohol sponsorship of sports games banned. That would require a commitment from government to cover a transition in sponsorship for those sports presently sponsored by the alcohol industry.

We did it with smoking: remember Rothmans cricket series? It is now sponsored by the National Bank. This example shows that changes can be made.


I would like to see the price of alcohol increased; the purchase age raised; accessibility, advertising and marketing of alcohol greatly reduced; and drink-driving counter-measures increased.


PART TWO
Feedback on the options for change as set out in ‘Alcohol in Our Lives’ (as set out on pages 233 to 241 Chapter 13 ‘Range of Options’ of the Law Commission’s Issues Paper).

We support the following options:

SUPPLY CONTROLS

Purchase/Drinking Age Options

(b) Increase the minimum purchase age from 18 to 20 years from any licensed premises.

Individual and Parental Responsibility for Young People’s Drinking Options

(a) No change.

License Options

(c) Have a single liquor license with conditions added on to it to reflect the nature of the business.

Liquor Licensing Authority Options

(d) Retain the Licensing Authority as the specialist regulator but give it enhanced powers and functions, for example to:

• Monitor and report on trends and adjust aspects of sale policies such as promotions,
• Award costs,
• Impose fines on licensees, managers and staff of licensed premises for breaches of any of the provisions of the Act,
• Enhance the flow of data from inspectors, police, District Licensing Agencie (DLA’s) medical officers of health, and licensees, and
• Implement quality control of DLA output and compliance.

• Requiring higher levels of performance and reporting from DLAs,
• Providing for mandatory training for their inspectors,
• Enabling the setting of fees for the issuing of licenses to allow the DLAs’ function to be performed effectively,
• Ensuring the DLAs’ decisions are independent of the council of the relevant local authority, and
• Specifying, by statute, a particular membership for DLAs.

• The overall social impact of the license is likely to be detrimental to the well-being of the local or broader community, taking into account matters such as the site of the proposed premises, the density and type of other premises in the area, and the health and social characteristics of the local population;
• Granting the license would be inconsistent with the object of the Act; the amenity, quiet or good order of the locality would be lessened by the grant of license, and
• The license would be inconsistent with the relevant local alcohol policy.