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COVER STORY
Tackling Alcohol Misuse
to curb crime and anti-social behaviour
The Enough is Enough Alcohol Reforms
The Hon Delia Lawrie,
Minister for Justice and Attorney-General,
Treasurer, Minister for Racing, Gaming and
Licensing, Minister for Alcohol Policy,
Legeslative Assembly of the Northern Territory
BANNED DRINKER REGISTER ID SCANNERS WILL BE INSTALLED IN TAKE-AWAY LIQUOR
OUTLETS ACROSS THE TERRITORY AS PART OF THE ENOUGH IS ENOUGH ALCOHOL
REFORMS TO TACKLE ALCOHOL-RELATED CRIME AND VIOLENCE. ALCOHOL MISUSE
FUELS 60% OF ALL ASSAULTS AND 67% OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE INCIDENTS ACROSS THE
TERRITORY, COSTING THE TERRITORY ECONOMY AN ESTIMATED $642 MILLION A YEAR. THE
BANNED DRINKER REGISTER WILL ENABLE PEOPLE WHO ARE BANNED IN ONE COMMUNITY
IN THE TERRITORY TO BE BANNED EVERYWHERE.
he impact of alcohol misuse alcohol misuse the statistics paint
on individuals, their families a stark picture and point to the
and the community is one unacceptable level of alcoholof the most pressing social issues
related crime in our community:
facing the Territory. Those working
in the justice system see first­ • 60% of all assaults and
67% of all domestic
hand the tragic consequences of
violence
incidents across
alcohol misuse and related crime
the
Territory
are alcoholand violence on a daily basis. The
related;
impacts are also seen across our
health and child protection systems
• 54 000 incidents of
and in our prisons.
T
When you analyse the effects of
police taking people into
protective custody or
sobering-up shelters in
2010; and
•
72% of Territory prisoners
stated their offence was
committed under the
influence of alcohol.
While Territorians have long been
regarded as ‘bloody hard drinkers’,
the statistics are nothing to be
proud of and ultimately cost our
community.
...for the first time creates consequences for people who
have a major alcohol problem without re-criminalising
public drunkenness and without waiting for them to
commit an offence.
ABORIGINAL MEDICAL SERVICES ALLIANCE NT (AMSANT)
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The Hon Delia Lawrie MLA,
The Territory has the highest alcohol
consumption per capita of any state
or territory, with Territorians drinking
at 1.5 times the national average
and Indigenous Territorians at 1.7
times the national average.
A recent study, The Harms from and
Costs ofAlcohol Consumption in the
Northern Territory commissioned
by the Menzies School of Health
and Research and undertaken
by the South Australian Centre
for Economics Studies, found
alcohol misuse costs the Territory
a staggering $642m a year. This
equates to $4197 for every adult
Territorian compared to $944
nationally. This study took into
account workforce impacts,
healthcare costs, and the costs of
associated crime and policing.
The healthcare costs are alarming.
Alcohol-related hospital admissions
in the Territory are more than
double the national average and
alcohol contributes to more deaths
and hospitalisations in the Territory
than anywhere else in Australia.
Shockingly, alcohol-related deaths
in the Territory are three times the
national average. Drink driving is
a key contributor. Between 2000­
2005, before our comprehensive
road safety reforms, 48% of road
deaths in the Territory involved
drinkers with an illegal blood alcohol
concentration.
The policing costs are significant. In
2008-09, 59% of police work across
the Territory was alcohol-related,
particularly responding to alcoholfuelled assaults and domestic
violence.
The health and policing costs
are a significant burden on our
community; howeverthe social and
economic costs are unacceptable.
While the Labor Government has
significantly boosted child protection
resources, we know alcohol misuse
and related family dysfunction
continues to have a devastating
impact on families and children.
The Report of the Board of Inquiry
into the Child Protection System
in the Northern Territory 2010,
Growing them strong, together,
heard evidence from Territorians
that grog is a key contributorto child
abuse and neglect.
Although this Government
has done more than any other
Territory Government or Australian
jurisdiction to reduce alcohol
misuse and alcohol-related crime
and antisocial behaviour through
local Alcohol Management Plans
that include supply restrictions and
other initiatives, we recognise more
needs to be done.
That is why we have announced
the most comprehensive alcohol
reforms in our nation that target
The Enough is Enough Alcohol Reforms.
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COVER STORY
For the first time we’re having a consistent approach
across the Territory. It gives us the capacity to act
early, to act in a way that is not criminally sanctioned
and to act in a way that I think creates consequences
in terms of prohibition orders and in terms of referral
for treatment... which could make a significant
difference. The government has dealt with the alcohol
problem as a health problem, as a mental health
problem outside the criminal justice system and they
are to be commended for that.
99
DR JOHN BOFFA, THE PEOPLE’S ALCOHOL ACTION COALITION
the problem drinker, turn them off
tap and mandating treatment. The
Alcohol Reforms aim to reduce
excessive alcohol consumption.
The Alcohol Reforms do not
criminalise alcoholism. Instead, they
provide a direct health intervention
to people for whom alcohol misuse
is having a detrimental impact on
themselves and others around
them, a response that has been
supported by the health sector and
the liquor industry.
The new laws introduce bans for
problem drinkers - those drinkers
taken into protective custody three
times in three months or people
who commit an offence or domestic
violence where alcohol is a factor.
Our Government believes this
approach targets the problem
drinker that is causing harm to
themselves, their families and the
community.
Problem drinkers will be listed on
a Banned Drinker Register to be
maintained by the Department
of Justice. The Banned Drinker
Register will be linked to an ID
Scanning System and installed
at takeaway licences across the
Territory. The reforms target the
sale of take-away alcohol because it
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makes up 70% of pure alcohol sales
and is consumed in an un-regulated,
often unsafe environment.
A person buying take-away alcohol
will have to scan their ID card in
order to purchase. In Darwin and
Palmerston the system will not
record any information about the
person ortheir purchase but simply
compares their ID to the Register in
orderto identify if the purchaser is a
Banned Drinker. In other areas of
the Territory where regional alcohol
restrictions apply, such as Alice
Springs and Katherine, information
will be held for 24 hours according
to supply control measures (i.e.
monitoring daily limits on alcohol
products such as cask wine). The
Banned Drinker Register ID system
is integral to enabling the bans to be
enforced at the point of sale.
The vast majority of Territorians
drink responsibly and these reforms
target the problem drinker so that
people who are not banned will only
have the minor inconvenience of
showing ID at point of sale.
The Alcohol Reforms also critically
provide consistency across the
Territory by ensuring that if you
are banned in one community
from buying alcohol that you will
be banned everywhere across
the Territory. This will reduce the
incentive for people to make a
choice about where they live based
on access to alcohol, and provide
a comprehensive response to a
Territory-wide problem.
The Alcohol Reforms include the
establishment of an Alcohol and
other Drugs Tribunal with the
powers to ban chronic drinkers
from purchasing, consuming or
possessing alcohol. It will also have
the powers to mandate treatment.
Primary health care treatment
interventions are linked to the bans,
with a step-up treatment approach
through the Tribunal.
The reforms also strengthen the
powers of the Alcohol Court,
introducing a new Substance
Misuse and Referral for Treatment
(SMART) Court based on
therapeutic jurisprudence, with
mandatory treatment powers.
The reforms are evidence based.
We have seen significant drops in
alcohol-related crime in communities
that have worked with the Territory
and Australian Governments to
introduce Alcohol Management
Plans (AMPS). There are currently
these initiatives are a great step forward and
obviously well thought out ...I believe they do reflect the
wishes of the majority of our community. Well done!
...
THE RESPONSIBLE DRINKERS LOBBY IN ALICE SPRINGS
18 AMPS being managed and 20
being developed or updated across
the Territory. The 18 AMPs in place
include Alice Springs, Katherine,
Tennant Creek, Maningrida, Groote
Eylandt, Nhulunbuy, Eiliott, Jabiru,
Borroloola and, soon Palmerston
and Darwin. They deliver local
responses to address alcohol
issues specific to that community
or region, and are developed with
input from the community, industry,
and other stakeholders.
In all regional centres where an
AMP is in place, there has been
a reduction in the consumption of
pure alcohol. Alcohol wholesale
supply data from 2001 to 2008
shows consumption of pure alcohol
has dropped by 22% in Nhulunbuy,
18% in Alice Springs, 14% in
Katherine, and 4.5% in Tennant
Creek. Groote Eylandt, in particular,
has had significant success through
its AMP, and this success continues
today. Since 2004-05 to 2008-09,
antisocial behaviour incidents have
dropped by 74%, property crime has
dropped by 68%, commercial break-
ins have dropped by 79%, numbers
in protective custody are down by
90%, and the level of aggravated
assaults has reduced by 68%.
Since the AMP was introduced in
Nhulunbuy in early 2008, we have
seen a significant 68% reduction in
antisocial behaviour incidents, and
the number of persons in protective
custody has fallen from 90 in 2004OS to 10 in 2008-09.
ID systems were implemented in
Alice Springs and Katherine to
support the AMPs, particularly the
The Enough is Enough Alcohol Reforms.
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enforcement of alcohol prohibition
orders and supply restrictions
underthese plans. The ID systems
have prevented 16,138 attempts
by people on prohibition orders to
purchase alcohol or attempts to
purchase above daily restricted
levels from 1 January 2009 to 31
December 2010. This highlights
the effectiveness of an ID system
in enforcing alcohol bans.
The Enough is Enough Alcohol
Reforms also address the issue
of secondary supply through
amendments to the Liquor Act that
make the practice illegal. This
means people who knowingly supply
alcohol to someone on the Banned
Drinker Register will themselves
be banned from purchasing and
consuming takeaway alcohol for
a period of time. Again, we have
taken from the successes of the
Groote Eylandt Permit System
where permit holders who have
supplied alcohol to non-permit
holders have lost their permits.
After a few people lost their permits,
word got around and reduced
secondary supply dramatically.
The Alcohol Reforms are considered
and targeted. The Alcohol Reforms
will see problem drinkers turned off
tap forthe first time in the Territory’s
history. This will facilitate treatment
and help turn their lives around.
Sadly the Country Liberals
Opposition rhetoric indicates they
do not support these reforms.
Instead they have incredulously
claimed that the link between
alcohol misuse and crime is
negligible. While their own policy
statements have ranged from
opening the rivers of grog in Alice
Springs by rolling back trading
hours to declaring “habitual drunks”,
they have no answers to enforcing
alcohol restrictions or bans. Without
an ID system like the Banned
Drinker Register their policy has no
way of stopping “habitual drunks”
buying alcohol.
Across the Alcohol Policy and Liquor
Industry sector there has been
wide support for these reforms.
We recognise there have also
been calls for additional measures,
including minimum pricing.
The Territory government has
clearly stated we are going after the
problem drinkers to turn them off
tap and prevent them from hurting
themselves, their families and our
community.
The Territory government
recognises chronic alcoholism is
a health issue which is why these
reforms include a range oftreatment
interventions including mandatory
treatment.
Minimum floor pricing affects
everyone in society, pensioners
and others would be adversely
affected when many of them are
not problem drinkers. That said,
we welcome any public debate on
minimum floor pricing or any other
strategy in the broader context of
harm minimisation.
The Legislation:
Three bills to underpin the Alcohol
Reforms were introduced to the
Northern Territory Legislative
Assembly during the March sittings
of Parliament: the Alcohol Reform
(Substance Misuse Assessment
and Referral for Treatment
Court) Bill 2011, Alcohol Reform
(Prevention of Alcohol-Related
Crime and Substance Misuse) Bill
2011 and Alcohol Reform (Liquor
Legislation Amendment) Bill 2011.
While some of the measures may cause inconvenience
to some in our community, we would urge people to
accept that this is a small sacrifice to pay for a much
greater good. As treatment agencies we are only too
well aware of the enormous cost of heavy alcohol use to
the individuals themselves, and to their families, friends
and the wider community Limited restrictions of this
kind, coupled with additional resources for treatment
and public education, will result in a safer and healthier
Territory.
JOINT STATEMENT BY AMITY COMMUNITY SERVICES,
THE NT COUNCIL OF SOCIAL SERVICE AND FORWAARD
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Alcohol Reform (Prevention
ofAlcohol-Related Crime
and Substance Misuse) Bill
2011
The Alcohol Reform (Prevention
of Alcohol-Related Crime and
Substance Misuse) Bill 2011
establishes police-issued banning
notices (Banning Alcohol and
Treatment (BAT) Notices) to turn
the tap off on problem drinkers who
are taken into protective custody
three times in three months, or
commit alcohol related offences or
domestic violence.
Banned Problem Drinkers may have
banning periods reduced if they
attend intervention or treatment.
Breaching the bans will lead to
increasing treatment requirements
and longer bans and on a third
breach referral to the Alcohol and
Other Drugs Tribunal which will
issue appropriate rehabilitation
orders.
The Bill also establishes the Alcohol
and Other Drugs Tribunal (ADT)
with the power to review police
issued bans and to order people
with alcohol or drug dependence
to attend treatment or rehabilitation;
or refer for assessment for income
management.
offers assessment and access to
programs for offenders misusing
substances.
The Bill follows a review of the
existing Alcohol Court and provides
a new SMART Court with more
flexibility and able to deal with a
wider range of offenders.
The SMART Court will be able
to hand down orders for people
who have been found guilty of a
criminal offence related to alcohol
or drug misuse. These orders can
include bans from consuming and
purchasing alcohol and mandatory
treatment.
The SMART Court provides an
avenue for offenders with alcohol
or drug problems to receive positive
treatment or rehabilitation as part
of their sentence, reducing the
likelihood they will offend again.
Alcohol Reform (Liquor
Legislation Amendment) Bill
2011
The third tier of the reforms amends
the L/guo/'Acftosupportthe roll-out
of the Banned Drinker Register,
an ID scanner system, across
the Northern Territory, to identify
problem drinkers and enforce
alcohol bans.
Police, FACs workers, health
professionals and family members
can also refer problem drinkers
to the ADT to seek a ban and
treatment order.
The amendments modernise
regulation of the liquor industry and
introduce tough penalties.
Alcohol Reform (Substance
•
Allow the Director of
Licensing to issue
infringement notice for
breaches by a licensee
thereby providing the
Director with the power to
act swiftly and appropriately
to the full range of the Act;
•
Clarify the roles of the
The Amendments:
Misuse Assessment and
Referral for Treatment
Court) Bill 2011
More than 60% of crime in the
Territory is alcohol related and
for persons already in the court
system, the new SMART Court
Director of Licensing, the
Liquor Commission and
the Courts in dealing with
breaches and removing the
potential fora licensee to be
punished twice forthe same
breach;
•
Introduce a new offence
making it illegal for a
person to irresponsibly
supply minors with alcohol
anywhere in the Territory,
with fines of up to $13,300;
•
Significantly increase
maximum penalties to
$33,250 or 12 months in
prison for Grog runners or
sly grog sellers; and
•
Significantly increase
maximum penalties to
$13,300 for people who
‘book up’ alcohol.
The Bill will make our licensing
system more responsive and
effective while deterring elements
in the community willing to put profit
before other people’s lives.
The Enough is Enough Alcohol
Reform package was developed
through extensive consultation with
all sectors of the community and
had received overwhelming support
through the consultation process
late last year.
For our health, our kids, our
community and our economy, the
cost of alcohol misuse is too high.
These reforms deliver the tools
to target problem drinkers and
turn off the tap to stop the
violence while also providing
direct health interventions to
turn lives around.
The Enough is Enough Alcohol Reforms.
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