The war against alcohol has begun

Community leaders in Kaikohe are calling on the Far North District Council to limit the number of liquor outlets in the town, and the district as a whole, and their opening hours, saying they contribute to crime, violence and poverty.

Church leader Mike Shaw said the big issue in Kaikohe was the easy accessibility of alcohol with five off-licences, three of which were open at 7am, in a town of about 4000 people. He often saw people carrying alcohol home at 8am.

"We know it's not for a quiet beer after work. It's for breakfast," he said.

Mr Shaw also wanted tighter rules on where liquor outlets could be located.

The council was considering new restrictions that would keep alcohol outlets away from schools, childcare facilities and churches, but he wanted that expanded to include parks and playgrounds. Kaikohe's Marino Court had a bottle store next to a children's playground, a library and public toilets. The grassy square had once been a place where families could relax, but no longer felt safe. People drank alcohol there, and youths tried to persuade adults to buy alcohol for them.

Bottle stores were also a target for violent crime, including a gun-point robbery of The Shed last year.

"My heart goes out to the owners, but do we need armed hold-ups next to our playground?" Mr Shaw asked.

The council is now considering feedback on its proposal for a Local Alcohol Policy (LAP) aiming to give communities a say on how and where alcohol can be sold. Oral submissions were heard last week, and councillors will make a decision on September 18. In total 98 submissions were made.

Mr Shaw said the number of licences should be capped at current levels or below. Kaikohe had five off-licences, down from seven when the Kaikohe Hotel and RSA bottle store were still trading, and three on-licences.

He did not see why the draft LAP treated bottle stores and supermarkets differently, allowing the latter to sell alcohol from 7am. He believed that all off-licences should have the same 9am-10pm hours, while on-licence premises were well supervised and not a problem.

"The violence I saw 30 years ago outside the Kaikohe Hotel has shifted home into the living rooms," he said.

Meanwhile a petition by Kaikohe identity Sean Reilly, calling for the community to have a right to limit liquor outlets, gathered 100 signatures in its first day. Mr Reilly wanted the council to bar alcohol from supermarkets as their licences expired, and reduce bottle store hours to 9am-8pm.

In his submission the council's chief alcohol licensing inspector, John Thorn, said impoverished Far North towns, and especially their young people and unemployed, did not need more alcohol outlets opening in empty shops. The LAP was a "golden opportunity" to address the issue, he said.

John Maurice, of Kaikohe's Bank Bar, said most problems stemmed from people drinking at home or in public places. He opposed a proposed one-way-door policy, saying it forced drinkers on to the street, where there were fewer restrictions, and also questioned an "anti-commercial" rule allowing supermarkets to sell alcohol two hours earlier than bottle stores.

"Members of this committee only need to be on the streets of this town between 7-8.30am to witness state-funded individuals walking the streets with boxes of beer and wine purchased from supermarkets and dairies, the same time working people are going to work and children are going to school," he said.

Mr Shaw, who leads the Kaikohe Church Leaders' Forum and is a member of the advisory group for the Kaikohe Youth Action Plan, said the council was doing the right thing by consulting.

"But I think the general public has no idea that they, the people of Kaikohe, Kaitaia or Kerikeri, can say 'We think five liquor stores is enough, we don't need more'," he added.

"You can feel powerless, but this is a way for our community to say we don't need Four Square, Countdown and New World to sell alcohol from 7am."

The council was coming under pressure from the alcohol lobby not to tighten the rules, but even one retailer was calling for a cap to prevent more liquor outlets moving in, he added.