Page 4796 - Week 16 - Monday, 25 November 1991
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people, the ordinary people of Canberra, this Bill is designed to protect. A lot of people in Canberra might not see the things ordinary people see. A lot of people do not use the bus interchanges. To correct Mr Berry, I make a deliberate point of using bus interchanges now and again.
Mr Berry: How many times have you been intimidated?
MR STEFANIAK: Once I felt a little uneasy at about 9 o'clock on a Friday night at Woden, when there were about eight or nine fairly tough looking young blokes who were quite inebriated.
Mr Berry: Did they work out who you were?
MR STEFANIAK: I felt a little bit uneasy, Mr Berry. Normally I am not terribly concerned about that, but there were quite a few of them and I felt a slight twinge. I thought, "This is interesting"; but nothing happened, thank God. So, it can be intimidating even to people such as me, and I can feel for the elderly people Mr Kaine spoke of and for the young people Mr Jensen spoke of and to whom I have spoken over the years.
I can assure the Labor Party that this is not grandstanding. This is something that has been required for a number of years now. It is something I pushed when we were in the consultative committee stage in about April 1989, even before we were sworn in. It is certainly something I personally believe in very much and have done since the laws were amended to allow open slather drinking in Canberra.
Some sensible amendments have been put forward. The Bar Association initially suggested the distance of 200 metres. That proved to be a little excessive, as was quite rightly pointed out by a number of people, including the liquor authority. It stated that that would infringe on certain ovals and areas where people legitimately might want to enjoy a drink.
I had no hesitation, after consultation with the professionals in the legislative drafting area, about reducing that to 50 metres. That still covers the problem but ensures that areas that at this stage do not need to be covered are not covered.
Similarly, Mr Connolly and other members have mentioned - I thank Mr Duby for it - the problem of bus stops in toto. The bus interchanges are basically where the problem is. I do not think anyone has a problem with Mr Connolly's wife taking out a beer to him when he is mowing the lawn.
Mrs Nolan: I have. He should get it himself.
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