NSW reviewing liquor and gaming laws

The New South Wales Government has called for public submissions as part of five-year statutory reviews of the Liquor Act 2007 and the Gaming and Liquor Administration Act 2007.

Minister for Hospitality George Souris on Friday said the review will report on the public consultation process and is to be tabled in Parliament by December 13 this year. 

"The new liquor laws introduced in July 2008 represented the biggest change in quarter of a century and this review will go a long way to assessing their effectiveness," he said. 

"Those changes included increased penalties, new offences, expanded regulatory powers, a Community Impact Statement process for liquor licence applications and establishment of an administrative-based liquor licensing body to replace the previous court-based system."

Souris said the review will be led by Michael Foggo, a lawyer and Commissioner of the Office of Liquor, Gaming and Racing for three years before retiring from that position four years ago. 

"Mr Foggo has a wealth of experience, having been involved in the regulation of liquor and gaming for more than 30 years. He is the ideal person to be the independent reviewer. 

"Recently, Mr Foggo was an independent member of a steering committee that oversaw the introduction of significant changes to the Victorian gaming environment." 

Souris said the five-year review aims to ensure that the policy objectives and terms of the legislation remain valid for today's circumstances, and is an important opportunity for the community to have their say on relevant issues. 

"An exploratory paper to assist submission makers is now available online at www.olgr.nsw.gov.au/liquorreview. Any interested person – including industry, regulators, the health sector, the community and advocacy groups – are invited to contribute by lodging submissions," he said.

Submissions should be sent via email to liquor.review@olgr.nsw.gov.au or sent to:

Statutory Reviews
Policy & Strategy, NSW Office of Liquor, Gaming and Racing
GPO Box 7060
SYDNEY NSW 2001 

The final date for submissions is August 30, 2013.

Source: The Shout, 10 July 2013