The NZABC support the Hon Kieran McAnulty’s Sale & Supply of Alcohol (Sales on Anzac Day morning, Good Friday, Easter Sunday and Christmas Day) Amendment Bill passing its first reading.
“Allowing restaurants, bars and supermarkets to sell or serve alcohol like any other day during Anzac Day morning, Good Friday, Easter Sunday and Christmas Day is a win for common sense”, said NZABC executive director Virginia Nicholls.
“We would also support the Bill going one-step further, allowing all other retailers who presently sell beer, wine and spirits to open on these days. In the next ten days, we will experience the confusion experienced across two of these holidays for business owners and customers.”
RSAs must apply for a special license to serve veterans beer, wine, or spirits. On Good Friday and Easter Sunday, customers in a restaurant or pub must have a meal alongside their preferred drink. Customers are not allowed to buy beer, wine, or spirits from any retailer on these days.
Nicholls said that the NZABC also supported MP Mike Butterick’s Members Bill Sale & Supply of Alcohol (Restrictions on Issue of Off-Licences and Low and No Alcohol Products) Amendment Bill, which has been drawn from the biscuit tin.
The Bill allows restaurants to hold an on-licence and off-licence under the same roof. This would allow a restaurant that is also a speciality food store to sell beer, wine, and spirits through an off-licence while removing regulatory roadblocks. It also allows restaurants to serve low-alcohol products and/or the sale of no alcohol beer, wine and spirits.
The SSAA s 52 presently specifies that low-alcohol drinks are to be available for on-licences. There is no mention of no-alcohol. This goes against the SSAA and reducing alcohol-related harm.
“This supports the flexibility to provide low-alcohol and/or no alcohol products to meet changing customer demand”, said Nicholls.
“It is also important to acknowledge that we are drinking less and drinking better. The Stats NZ beer, wine and spirits consumption per capita has declined more than 30 percent since 1986.”
The NZ Health survey provides information on New Zealanders’ health and well-being. It shows that five out of six (83.4 percent) NZ adults are drinking beer, wine, and spirits responsibly. This is an increase of 4.7 percentage points over the past four years (78.7 percent 2019/20).
This means that one out of six adults drinks in a hazardous way, which in the past four years has declined to 16.6 percent (21.3 percent 2019/20).
The Health NZ guidelines for low-risk drinking are two standard drinks a day for women and three standard drinks a day for men, with at least two alcohol-free days each week.
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