Page 3285 - Week 11 - Thursday, 12 September 1991
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Apart from routine inspections, according to my advice some few months ago, approximately 1,160 licensed premises were inspected over the last financial year; but inspected only in the sense of having a visit from an inspector looking for under-age drinking and aspects of that nature, not the actual suitability of the premises and compliance with the building aspects of licensing under section 18 of the Act. These figures suggest that there has been a visit about four or five times per year to the 200 to 250 premises which I was advised were graded as being possible areas for under-age drinking.
I wish Mr Connolly would listen to this. The written advice given to me as Attorney was that 200 to 250 premises were considered last year to be possible areas for under-age drinking, and he has dismissed this topic. That statistic, Mr Speaker, on my advice, means that about half the licensed premises are considered potential areas for under-age drinking and that each received a small number of visits - four or five. This again reflects the staffing resources of the Law Office to which the GALA functions have been moved following its abolition last December.
Liquor Act amendments moved by the Alliance Government last year gave police the shared role in this activity which I now believe they should take on completely, given the incipient staffing problems of the Law Office. In other words, I no longer see the regulatory functions at this level being properly placed in a Government Law Office. I trust that the Government will move to do something about that shortly.
On the subject of prohibition discos, I copped a lot of flak for questioning the wisdom of sending 13-year-olds into the bar culture of some of our nightspots. Immediately a disinformation campaign was commenced against me by certain licensees. I warn them here in this speech that if that campaign persists I will name their premises and what my advice was in relation to them.
What I was concerned about was that GALA had authorised prohibition discos in terms under the current legislation which did not give an even chance to children who, in my view, were better protected by the New South Wales licensing rules and guidelines issued. In other words, there were drinking prohibitions before and after periods of a half-hour or an hour - I have forgotten the exact details - and no liquor could be sold elsewhere on the premises while the discos were going.
In our case - I am not referring to the clubs whatsoever in this comment - GALA did not take into account an anomaly, in my view, which allows under-18-year-olds into bar areas provided they are in the presence of a responsible adult. So, if you have a bouncer, or an adult behind the bar or an adult somewhere in the area, you can allow young people under the age of 18 years into that area. I was aware that the licensees knew that GALA was uneasy with this, particularly following my concerns.
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