By Andrew Starke
Victoria’s Coalition Government has extended the freeze on late-night liquor licences in inner Melbourne and surrounding municipalities for a further 18 months.
Consumer Affairs Minister Michael O’Brien said the freeze, which was due to expire at the end of this year, will stop the growth of high-risk late-night venues in the local government areas of Melbourne, Port Phillip, Yarra and Stonnington.
The extension will mean that until June 30, 2013, the Director of Liquor Licensing will not grant any new licences for bars, pubs and nightclubs operating after 1am unless the applicant can show exceptional circumstances.
Membership-based clubs and most restaurants and cafes are not affected by the freeze.
“Victorian families should have the right to go out at night without fearing violence and anti-social behaviour,” O’Brien said.
“The proliferation of late-trading beer barns and the attendant rise in anti-social behaviour has damaged Victoria’s reputation as a safe place to have a night out.”
In particular, a number of large-capacity nightclubs have been identified as significant contributors towards alcohol-related violence and the Government’s freeze on late-night liquor licences will allow it to monitor the effect of the freeze on licensee behaviour and practices and the safety of patrons.
“The Coalition Government believes the regulation of existing late-night venues should be adequate to protect patrons, venue staff and the community,” said O’Brien.
“Stronger laws and regulations for licensed venues will make Victoria’s entertainment precincts safer and more enjoyable for all.
“The extension will also enable the Coalition Government to consider whether this ban should be extended to other areas that have experienced higher levels of anti-social behaviour.”
However Convenor of the Nightclub Owners Forum Peter Iwaniuk said it would be useful if the Minister could provide the industry with his definition of a ‘beer barn’ and actually name those venues which meet Government criteria.
“It is claimed that there 454 licensed venues in inner Melbourne that can trade past 1am,” he said.
“Of these there are less than 20 of which we are aware that could be described as large venues (ie with a capacity of 700 or more) so there has hardly been a proliferation of large venues as the Minister has stated.”
A beer barn traditionally has been used to refer to large pubs and clubs in the suburbs which trade almost 24 hours, 7 days a week, have a variety of public bars and gaming rooms, and sell huge quantities of drink-in and take away liquor.
“The handful of large nightclubs in Melbourne will typically trade only one or two nights a week, and average a per capita sale of 2.5 drinks per head per night,” said Iwaniuk.
“Rather than encourage people to drink to excess, these large venues ‘sell social space’ and are the only venues that can provide quality entertainment, dance floors and a variety of spaces for patrons to mingle.
“They are also very safe, with state of the art security, which makes them very attractive to female patrons.”
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