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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1999 Week 7 Hansard (1 July) . . Page.. 1939 ..

MR HUMPHRIES (continuing):

The Bill also provides that the Licensing Standards Manual be prepared and maintained by the Liquor Licensing Board. It is appropriate that this responsibility rests with the Board as part of its overarching responsibility to promote and encourage responsibility in the sale and consumption of liquor. I understand the Board is currently preparing a revised version of the Manual in consultation with interested parties and stakeholders. I expect to be able to table the revised Manual shortly after this Bill is debated by the Assembly.

I also propose in the Bill to introduce further amendments relating to underage drinking. They are:

a new offence for a licensee if a minor consumes liquor on licensed premises or possesses liquor on licensed premises except in the course of employment or training;

a new offence for a licensee if a minor is in a bar-room on licensed premises except in the care of a responsible adult or in the course of employment or approved training;

the tightening of the definition of responsible adult; and

the inclusion of a power to enable licensees to confiscate certain forms of identification where there are reasonable grounds for believing the identification is false.

The amended definition of 'responsible adult' requires that the adult is a person who is parent, step-parent, guardian, person acting in place of a parent, carer or spouse of the minor and could reasonably be expected to exercise responsible supervision.

This is a further tightening of the classes of persons who can be with a minor to legally allow the minor to enter the bar-room on a licensed premises. I propose the change as the current definition which has been in place since 1994 has not resulted in a reduction in the incidence of minors gaining access to bar-rooms in inappropriate circumstances and to assist licensees in relation to their proposed new responsibility not to allow unaccompanied minors into barrooms. I believe the tighter definition will be a positive benefit in both regards.

The amendments also provide an exception and defence for minors and licensees respectively where a minor is in a bar-room of licensed premises to attend a function for minors.

In relation to the confiscation of identification by licensees the Bill includes provisions requiring licensees to keep a record of any identification that is confiscated and to forward the identification to the Registrar within 72 hours.

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