John MacDonald: Limiting booze sales - Auckland has but Christchurch shouldn't

With some ideas, they sound better than they actually are. 

Which is how I’m feeling about this idea that Christchurch should do what Auckland has just done and ban supermarkets and bottle stores from selling alcohol after 9 o’clock at night. 

I don’t think it’s a good idea. Because I just don’t think it would make people buy less alcohol, they’d just buy it at different times if they couldn’t buy it after 9 o’clock. 

And what about people who do buy alcohol at night and don’t cause any problems? Why should they be punished? So that’s where I’m at on this. 

As an aside, I can’t actually remember the last time I bought alcohol after 9pm. 

I buy alcohol just like a lot of other people, but I cannot remember buying it late at night from the supermarket or a bottle store. 

Nevertheless, even though I probably wouldn’t personally be affected by a 9pm shutdown of booze sales in shops and supermarkets, I still can’t support the call that’s coming today from community board leader Paul McMahon. 

Paul is the chairperson of the Waitai-Coastal-Burwood-Linwood Community Board, in Christchurch. 

Now I’m not saying he doesn’t know what he’s talking about, because, as well as being a community board member, he works in alcohol harm prevention. He’s a local advocate for alcohol reform. 

He says about 75 percent of alcohol is purchased from off-licence premises. And he says, from his experience, most harm comes from alcohol purchased after 9pm - and, the later it gets, the worse it gets. 

Now I would say that, generally, that’s the case with all alcohol consumption. 

What’s that saying? “Nothing good ever happens after midnight”? It might even be earlier. But you get what I mean, the later people drink, the more likely they are to find themselves in trouble. 

And so what Paul McMahon is saying today is that nothing good ever happens after 9pm, which is when he wants bottle stores and supermarkets to have to stop selling the beers and the wines and RTDs and the spirits. 

On a practical level, I reckon most supermarkets in Christchurch are closed by 9 or 10, anyway. So why bother with a one-hour ban for the ones that stay open later than 9? 

Christchurch city councillor Sam MacDonald is saying that he doesn’t think anything needs to be done with bars and restaurants, because he thinks they’re doing a pretty good job of keeping people under control, but he’s open to looking at tighter restrictions on off-licence alcohol sales. 

The thing is though, is what is it exactly we’re trying to find an answer to? If it’s an answer to the problem of people drinking way more than they should and causing problems for themselves and trouble for other people, then I don’t think reducing the hours when bottle stores and supermarkets can sell alcohol is the answer. 

Because, if people are going to get off their trolleys, they’ll do it. Irrespective of when the bottle store closes. 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Canterbury Morning's Podcast with John McDonald
from News Talk ZB.

Speaker 2 (00:13):
You know, with some ideas, they sound better than they
actually are, don't they. I mean they sound great or
look it on paper, But that's about it. And that's
how I'm feeling this morning about this idea. You may
have heard about or you may not have heard about,
but that's how I'm feeling this morning about this idea
a local community board member has had about christ Church

(00:36):
doing what they've done in Auckland, what they've just done
in Auckland and banning supermarkets and bottle stores from selling
alcohol after nine o'clock at night. I don't think it's
a good idea because I just don't think it would
make people buy less alcohol. They just buy it at
different times if they couldn't buy it after nine o'clock.

(00:58):
And what about people who do buy the grog at
night and don't cause any problems? Why should they be punished?
So that's where I'm at on this one, you know,
as an aside, and Jess thought about it too, thought
we've really thought about this one. Neither of us can
actually remember the last time we bought alcohol after nine
o'clock at night. I mean, I buy it just like

(01:21):
other people. So it is Jess, but neither of us
we cannot remember buying it late at night. This is
retail alcohol sales I'm talking about to you, Not from
the bar or a hotel or restaurant. This is from
the supermarket or the bottle store. And this is what
this is all about. In fact, oh go as far
as saying that I have never nipped out to top

(01:44):
up the grog supply after nine o'clock. Nevertheless, even though
I probably wouldn't personally be affected by a nine o'clock
shut down of boot sales and shops and supermarkets and
christ Church, I still can't support the call that's coming
today from Paul McMahon. Now, Paul is the chairperson of

(02:05):
the White Tie A Coastal Burwood Linnwood Community Board in
christ Church. I'm going to have a word with him shortly,
and he is saying today that christ Church should follow
Auckland's lead and tell retailers you can't sell greg after
nine o'clock at night. Now, I'm not gonna say, I'm
not gonna say he doesn't know what he's talking about,

(02:26):
because as well as being a community board member, and
this is my opinion that I'm expressing here. But I'm
not going to say, oh, you don't know what you're
talking about, because as well as being a community board member,
he works on the field of alcohol harm prevention. You know,
he's a local advocate for alcohol reform. And here's why
he thinks christ Church should do what they've done in Auckland.

(02:48):
He says about seventy five percent of alcohol is purchased
from off licensed premises, so your bottlestores, in your supermarkets
seventy five percent. And he says, from his experience, most
harm from alcohol comes from alcohol purchased after nine o'clock
at night, and the latter it gets, the worst it gets. Now,

(03:08):
I would say that that generally is probably the case
with all alcohol consumption. What's that saying? Nothing, nothing good
ever happens after midnight? Was someone that might even be earlier,
but you know what, you get what I mean, the
later people drink, the more likely they are defy themselves
in trouble. And so what Paul McMahon is saying today

(03:30):
is that nothing good ever happens after nine o'clock at night,
which is when he wants bottlestores and supermarkets to have
to stop selling the beers and the wines and the
RTDs and the spirits. Now, on a practical level, I
reckon most supermarkets in christ Church are closed by nine
or ten anyway, So I bother with a one hour
band for the ones that stay open later than nine

(03:51):
o'clock at night. And you might know of some bottlestores
that are open well into the night, but I reckon
most of them. I reckon most of them are closed
by nine or ten as well. Again, tell me if
I'm wrong on that front. Thirsty Liquor, Thirsty Liquor and
PAPAOUI looks like they're open until eleven o'clock at night.
But I just don't think forcing shops and supermarkets to
stop selling at nine pm as the answer. I say

(04:14):
that Christian City Councilor Sam McDonald is saying today that
he doesn't think anything needs to be done with the
bars and restaurants because he reckons they're doing a pretty
good job of keeping people under control. But Sam McDonald
says he is open to looking at tighter restrictions on
off license alcohol sales. Quite interested, quite surprised by that.

(04:34):
But what I would ask you, is what is it
exactly that we're trying to find an answer to. What
is the problem we're trying to find the answer to.
If it's an answer to the problem of people drinking
way more than they shouldn't, causing problems for themselves and
trouble for other people. If that's the problem, then I
don't think reducing the hours when bottlestores and supermarkets can

(04:55):
sell alcohol as the answer, because if people are going
to get off their trolleys, they'll do it whonn't they
irrespective of when the bottle store closes.

Speaker 1 (05:05):
For more from Catbory Mornings with John McDonald, listen live
to news talks at be Christchurch from nine am weekdays,
or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.