Hospitality bosses want to tip out booze

A hospitality collective has come up with a novel idea for dealing with drunks – it wants to give pub owners the ability to pour alcohol out within an area near their venues to deal with public drunkenness.

NT Hospitality Group, which includes licensed restaurateurs, cafes and small bar owners, says the CBD’s alcohol-fuelled crime rate has gone too far.

Part of the problem, it says, is the lack of enforcement of illegal public consumption.

Pearl owner Elle Kearns reckons venue proprietors should be allowed to use their security to control a 25sq m area outside their venues.

“We don’t have any rights to move you on if you are consuming alcohol illegally in alcohol-free zones,” Kearns told Mix 104.9.

“We know the police are probably stretched right now but we believe that by implementing these changes to the by-laws we can contribute collectively as a group to allow our patrons and also premises to be secured after hours.”

As far as she can see, there is “no perceived safety left in the city”.

For example, one venue has been broken into 29 times in 20 months.

So the group is getting CBD restaurants and bars to contribute to night-time private security arrangements. That will help keep their licensed premises secured once they close at night.

They are also asking Darwin Council to amend its by-laws and Licensing NT, changing the Private Security Act to allow security to pour out alcohol that is been consumed in Alcohol Restricted Areas.

But Lord Mayor Kon Vatskalis says the council can’t do it. It doesn’t have the ability to make such by-laws and it, itself, did not have the power to pour alcohol out.

“The issue of security personnel pouring out alcohol is clearly an NT Government issue,” he told the NT News.

“Only they can allow or not this to happen. I am fully supportive of any measure that will reduce anti-social behaviour in our city.

“I believe the business group should meet with the police and discuss this further.”

13th July 2018