New Liquor Act passed in Parliament

The Territory Government has passed the Liquor Bill 2019 through the Legislative Assembly.

The Bill is a complete rewrite of the Liquor Act 1978, and achieves 70 recommendations from the Riley Review, including:

  • A risk-based licensing scheme, which rewards responsible licensees and punishes licensees who do the wrong thing
  • Establishing a dedicated Director of Liquor Licensing who will exclusively manage liquor compliance and enforcement
  • Setting response timeframes for Licensing NT and the Liquor Commission for applications and complaints, which will reduce red tape and provide certainty
  • Certainty for businesses providing complimentary drinks, such as hairdressers and jewellery stores

The Territory Government’s alcohol reforms are having an impact on cutting violent crime in the NT through a reduction in the supply of alcohol through the Banned Drinker Register, a new Police alcohol unit and 75 new Police Auxiliary Liquor Inspectors.

Alcohol related harm and alcohol-fuelled crime and violence costs the Northern Territory Government over $1.38 Billion every single year, so the Territory Government is doing everything it can to reduce problem drinking.

Our tough alcohol measures have led to:

  • A 22% reduction in alcohol related assaults across the Territory, including a 13% reduction in Darwin and a 38% reduction in Alice Springs
  • A 24.5% decrease in alcohol-related emergency department presentations in Northern Territory hospitals between September–December 2018, compared to 2017. That trend has continued in the first quarter in 2019 with a 22% reduction
  • More than 17,000 litres of alcohol ear-marked for illegal secondary supply have been seized by police since the creation of the Alcohol Policing Unit

Source: NT Government