Page 4722 - Week 16 - Wednesday, 28 November 1990
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My main concern, however, is that the original Bill does not attack the cause of the problem, and therefore it is not a serious proposal. It is appropriate that I say this because later today we are to consider amendments to the Liquor Act. I think that is where we should be looking. If you want to be serious about this, Mr Stefaniak or Mr Collaery or anybody else, that is where you should be looking. Mr Collaery mentioned the case of a young person who is now rendered in a most distressing condition because of a brief scuffle outside a nightclub in Civic.
I do not recall when that happened, but I believe that it was during the time of the move-on powers. With or without move-on powers, that was going to happen because of what occurred within that club, because of the ability of a licensee to pour liquor into people indefinitely and to turn them out onto the streets in a condition in which they will be argumentative.
If you want to stop this violence, and we all do - I do not disagree with your intentions in this respect - look at the real cause of it. I have looked carefully at the Liquor Act and the amendments that Mr Collaery proposes. There is only some comment about under-age drinking.
Mr Collaery: I trust that you are talking about the Labor Club, too, are you?
MR WOOD: I will talk about any club, yes.
Mr Collaery: Okay, right, you are on the record.
MR WOOD: It will not be long before, in this Assembly, I stand up and list the names of a whole lot of places where there should be some serious action. In your proposed amendments to the Liquor Act, which are fine amendments as I have seen them, nowhere is there a - - -
Mr Collaery: Your committee recommended all of them.
MR WOOD: That is what I am about to say, but you have not followed the whole course of our recommendations. If you were serious about stopping violence about which we are concerned, you would have had many more amendments in front of us later today. I am sure that is the way to proceed. What is the point of turning young people out onto the streets - so then you are going to have some powers for the police to move them on - in a condition in which they should never be found?
You have a chance today to take some serious action. This was not in our report, but we ought to consider making licensees responsible for the actions of the people whom they make drunk. What about that? That is a very heavy
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