Alcohol Licensing

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INTRODUCTION

In Aotearoa, the sale of alcohol is governed by the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012 (SSAA). The key purpose of the SSAA is to reduce alcohol harm by controlling how and where alcohol may be sold.

The SSAA sets out two processes in which members of the public can directly take part:

The granting of licences to sell alcohol; and
The adoption by a District or City Council of a Local Alcohol Policy.

For someone to sell (serve or supply) alcohol they need to have an alcohol licence which is issued by the local Council. There are four types of alcohol licence:

Off-licence (a bottle shop or somewhere where you take the alcohol away with you)
On-licence (a bar or café where alcohol is only drunk on premises)
Club licence (a sports club with a paid membership)
Special licence (a special event/series of events)

Where alcohol is consumed onsite (bars, cafes, clubs and at events), a range of food must also be available to purchase, and water must be freely and readily available too.

It is important to note that direct community engagement is by way of objecting only, not support. It remains open to anyone to discuss with an applicant for a licence how they might express support.

OVERVIEW

When a licence is first granted it is usually for one year. After that if a renewal is granted, it usually lasts for three years.

When someone applies for a licence or to renew a licence, they make an application to their local Council. Each Council a District Licencing Committee (DLC) which oversees the process and makes the decision whether or not to grant the licence.

When an application is made the local community is notified in two ways:

by a sign on the outside of the premises where the Applicant intends to sell the alcohol; and
By “public notice” either within a local community newspaper or by publication on the Council’s website (this can vary across the country but the decision as to which method is used sits with the Council).

Once the community has been notified, people 25 working days (usually 5 weeks) to lodge an Objection.

Most Councils allow you to lodge an Objection via their website or by emailing their DLC team, otherwise Objections can be posted in or made at the main Council offices.

If you object you need to include the following:

Address of premises to which the objection relates (which you can get from the notice of application),
Your name, address and contact details,
The “grounds” on which you object (See below)
Your signature and the date on which you send/deliver it

Critically, your objection must be received by the DLC within that 25 working day window from when the notification was first made. The SSAA does not permit the DLC to consider objections which are received late.

There are also agencies which can or must report on alcohol licence applications: police, medical officer of health, and a licensing inspector from the local Council. Whether or not they report (and if so, what they say) does not affect members of the public objecting.

If anyone objects or if a reporting agency (i.e. police, health, licensing inspector) opposes the licence application a hearing of the DLC must be held. If no one objects and no reporting agency the DLC may decide the application “on the papers” and hold no hearing.

If a Hearing is set, any Objectors will be notified by the DLC team at least 10 working days before any Hearing and be advised of any other procedural matters, including dates for filing evidence. It is important to follow the procedural requirements as a hearing must not result in “surprise” evidence emerging. That would be unfair on everyone involved. A Statement of Evidence does not need to be long, complicated and full of confusing legalese and statistics.

For an objector from the community, once you have filed your objection that is the time to then collect any evidence you have to support your objection. It is important to note that “evidence” here includes peoples’ stories of their experiences and concerns. Stories carry weight with the DLC because they require the DLC to face the realities of alcohol related harm in the affected community.

After Evidence has been filed with the DLC within the required time, an Agenda for the Hearing will be circulated which should include the application, evidence, Agency reports, Objections, as well as the date, time and location of the Hearing.

Hearings are generally held at a Council office but, occasionally, DLCs take their hearings to the community. In which case the hearing might be on a marae or in a community hall.

If you object, it is important to attend at the hearing and speak to your concerns. DLCs only give weight to Objections where the Objector appears at the Hearing to present their evidence and answer any further questions.

At the hearing, the DLC will sit at the front of the room and opposite them on the other side will be the Applicant. The Inspector and Reporting Agencies will sit to one side of the DLC and the Objectors along the other side. Council staff will also be in attendance to help.

Objectors can have a representative (just as the applicant can) at the hearing or represent themselves, they can also call witnesses. Witnesses could be experts in alcohol harm, have personal experiences with of such harm, or be people who wanted to object but were either too late or would like to maintain anonymity. It is important that witness’s evidence is not presented in a surprise fashion at the hearing and is relevant to the application.

All parties will have a turn being sworn in, presenting their evidence, and answering questions from the DLC.

The DLC will reserve their decision so that they can consider the evidence and deliberate. All Objectors will be sent the decision once it has been made.

DLC decisions can be appealed to the Alcohol Regulatory & Licensing Authority (also known as ARLA). Appeals are beyond the scope of this Chapter.

OBJECTING

Once notice of the licence application has been published, the community has 25 working days (about five weeks, depending on public holidays) to file objections with the Council.

When you’re ready to start your Objection, visit your Council’s website, if you search ‘alcohol licence’ it should pop up with a page that includes information about objecting to a licence. Some Councils have a form on their website that you can type the details of your objection into. Others will have an email or postal address for the team that you can send your objection to. Your objection must be received by Council within those 25 working days.

If you have any questions about the process, first get in touch with your local District Licencing Secretary to the DLC at the Council. They should be able to outline the process you need to follow. With so many territorial authorities around Aotearoa, it is not possible to set out every local requirement here.

The first thing your objection needs to state is your name, address, email, and phone number. If you don’t have an email or phone number, your name and address will be fine.

You also need to identify the licence to which you are objecting (by reference to the premises is the usual method).

Individuals and Groups can both file Objections.

You could also reach out to your local MP or other Groups and let them know about the licence application or start a petition.

The next thing your objection needs to include is your grounds for objecting. The Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012 is the law which sets out how alcohol is sold in Aotearoa. Your objection needs to tie into the rules set out by the Law – this is called Grounds. The Grounds on which you can object to a licence are set out within section 105 of the SSAA (for a new licence), or section 131 of the SSAA (for s a licence renewal) – see further below. Your objection must state what Grounds of the law it relates to.

You don’t need to set out concerns for every Ground. You also don’t need to explain all your concerns in your objection. You can start with only saying what Grounds you will be objecting on and when it is time to file evidence, explain your concerns as they relate to those Grounds then.

So, to summarise, your objection needs to have the address of the store, your name and contact details, say what Grounds within the law you are objecting on, be signed and dated and be filed with Council within the 25 working days.

GROUNDS

Objections must tie into the Grounds set out within the Act. The Grounds on which you can object to a licence are set out within section 105 of the Act for a new licence, or section 131 if it is a licence renewal.

For a new licence, you can Object on the following Grounds (s105):

The object of the Act –is the purpose of the law, which is to minimise alcohol harm through safe and responsible sale and use. Alcohol harm can mean crime, damage, death, disease, disorderly behaviour, illness, injury, noise, nuisance, or vandalism. The object of the Act is a good starting point for any objection. (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, section 105(1)(a))

The suitability of the Applicant – this might mean the applicant lacks experience or concern with the harm alcohol causes and their responsibilities to minimise it, the Applicant might not be involved with the community that they will be selling to, they could have had a DUI or other convictions against them in the past, or other reasons why you don’t think they are a good person to be selling alcohol. (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, section 105(1)(b))

Relevant Alcohol Policy – different Councils around the country have different local alcohol policies. This is a set of rules in addition to the Act about how alcohol is sold within the Council’s area. You can find Local Alcohol Policies on Council websites. You could find out if your Council has one and see what it says. There might be rules in it that the licence would break if it was granted. (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, section 105(1)(c))

The days or hours alcohol will be sold – if the store is near a school, it might mean you don’t want them to sell alcohol while children are leaving school. Or it might mean you don’t want them to sell alcohol after 8pm because people are more likely to have already started drinking by then so it could increase intoxication. You can say in your objection that you object to the licence entirely then also say if it is granted that it should include extra conditions. Limitations on the store’s days and hours could be part of those conditions. (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, section 105(1)(d))

The design and layout of the store – this could mean the store has blind spots that could make hiding alcohol or stealing likelier to happen, or any other concerns you have with the layout. It could be concern for lit up signs, bright colours, branding, advertising cheap alcohol etc. Your concerns could also form part of any conditions. (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, section 105(1)(e))

What else will be sold – people have objected to licences because the store would sell vaping products, lollies, or single RTDs or beers. Things that tend to appeal to under-18s or those in high-deprivation situations. This could also mean having a range of zero alcohol and low alcohol options available. This is another thing that can be included as an extra condition. (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, section 105(1)(f))

Other services being offered – this could be concerns relating to any other services operating on the premises. (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, section 105(1)(g))

Amenity and good order – (more than minor negative impact) your objection might explain that selling alcohol would have a negative impact like noise, nuisance, or vandalism issues. It could also be other harm, behaviour or crimes that could stem from alcohol. It could be littering and broken bottles, graffiti, break-ins, parties and loud music, yelling, or other disturbances or harm. (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, section 105(1)(h))

Amenity and good order – (less than minor negative impact given existing issues but never-the-less desirable not to issue further licences) this wording can be confusing! This could be when there are already alcohol stores nearby and alcohol harm is happening. The applicant might say one more store wouldn’t make things much worse. (A horrible thing to say for sure!) You could object and say there is existing harm and supply of alcohol in the area, and it is desirable to not issue any more licences. In your evidence you could explain how the ease of access to alcohol and visibility to children increases harm, that continuing to approve more licences implies that what is happening is OK. Your Council may have parameters around how many alcohol outlets are allowed within a certain area within their Local Alcohol Policy and you could also cross-reference this concern back to section 105(1)(c) too. (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, section 105(1)(i))

Appropriate systems and staff training – this could be concerns about how many staff are working at different times of day, how ID will be checked and verified, the use of CCTV, how staff will decide when someone is intoxicated and should not be served. This is another point that could be included as an extra condition, such as having security onsite. (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, section 105(1)(j))

Matters raised by the DLC inspector, police or public health officer – the DLC inspector must report on every application and the police and public health officer have to make enquiries into an application. You could refer to any concerns they raise in your objection and elaborate with your views too. (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, section 105(1)(k))

For a licence renewal you can Object on the following Grounds (s131):

The object of the Act –is the purpose of the law, which is to minimise alcohol harm through safe and responsible sale and use. Alcohol harm can mean crime, damage, death, disease, disorderly behaviour, illness, injury, noise, nuisance, or vandalism. The object of the Act is a good starting point for any objection. (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, section 131(1)(a) x-ref section 105(1)(a))

The suitability of the Applicant – this might mean the applicant lacks experience or concern with the harm alcohol causes and their responsibilities to minimise it, the Applicant might not be involved with the community that they will be selling to, they could have had a DUI or other convictions against them in the past, or other reasons why you don’t think they are a good person to be selling alcohol. (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, section 131(1)(a) x-ref section 105(1)(b))

Relevant Alcohol Policy – different Councils around the country have different local alcohol policies. This is a set of rules in addition to the Act about how alcohol is sold within the Council’s area. You can find Local Alcohol Policies on Council websites. You could find out if your Council has one and see what it says. There might be rules in it that the licence would break if it was granted. (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, section 131(1)(a) x-ref section 105(1)(c))

The days or hours alcohol will be sold – if the store is near a school, it might mean you don’t want them to sell alcohol while children are leaving school. Or it might mean you don’t want them to sell alcohol after 8pm because people are more likely to have already started drinking by then so it could increase intoxication. You can say in your objection that you object to the licence entirely then also say if it is granted that it should include extra conditions. Limitations on the store’s days and hours could be part of those conditions. (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, section 131(1)(a) x-ref section 105(1)(d))

The design and layout of the store – this could mean the store has blind spots that could make hiding alcohol or stealing likelier to happen, or any other concerns you have with the layout. It could be concern for lit up signs, bright colours, branding, advertising cheap alcohol etc. Your concerns could also form part of any conditions. (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, section 131(1)(a) x-ref section 105(1)(e))

What else will be sold – people have objected to licences because the store would sell vaping products, lollies, or single RTDs or beers. Things that tend to appeal to under-18s or those in high-deprivation situations. This could also mean having a range of zero alcohol and low alcohol options available. This is another thing that can be included as an extra condition. (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, section 131(1)(a) x-ref section 105(1)(f))

Other services being offered – this could be concerns relating to any other services operating on the premises. (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, section 131(1)(a) x-ref section 105(1)(g))

Appropriate systems and staff training – this could be concerns about how many staff are working at different times of day, how ID will be checked and verified, the use of CCTV, how staff will decide when someone is intoxicated and should not be served. This is another point that could be included as an extra condition, such as having security onsite. (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, section 131(1)(a) x-ref section 105(1)(j))

Amenity and good order – (more than minor increase by refusal) your objection might explain how currently there are negative impacts because of the store and refusing a renewal would increase the amenity and good order by reducing littering and broken bottles, graffiti, break-ins, parties and loud music, yelling, or other disturbances or harm. (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, section 131(1)(b))

Matters raised by the DLC inspector, police or public health officer – the DLC inspector must report on every application and the police and public health officer have to make enquiries into an application. You could refer to any concerns they raise in your objection and elaborate with your views too. This could include previous failed site inspections. (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, section 131(1)(a) x-ref 105(1)(k) and 131(a)(c))

Manner of operations to dates – this includes how the applicant has sold, displayed, advertised, or promoted alcohol in their operations and your Objection could raise any concerns with those aspects. (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, section 131(a)(d))

EVIDENCE

After you file your Objection, you will hear from Council about when you need to file your Statement of Evidence for the Hearing.

There will often be a delay of several months between Objecting and the date of any hearing.

A Statement of Evidence is the detail and context to your Objection. It is important for Objectors to file evidence so that their concerns can be taken seriously and be properly considered by the DLC. A Statement of Evidence does not need to be complex and full of legal references and statistics!

Your Statement of Evidence needs to include the same details as your Objection plus also your evidence. Your evidence set outs your reasons why you don’t want the licence granted, remember your reasons need to tie into the Grounds you set out in your Objection. Your local Community Law Centre can help with drafting a statement of evidence if you are nervous.

Filing evidence is an opportunity for Objectors to share their perspective and story: to describe the alcohol harm they have witnessed or experienced personally or within their community, and share their concerns about the licence application.

If you are legally or statistically minded, you can also include facts and data so long as you are confident presenting and defending the basis of it at a hearing, but you do not have to. You can also attach to your Statement of Evidence any reports, media articles, complaints about the premises from Facebook or Google, research, petitions or other evidence supporting your position.

As well as Objecting to the licence as a whole, you can also set out additional conditions you would like attached to the licence if it is granted. This could be conditions around things like the premises layout, opening hours, products sold, other services offered, signage, advertising, lighting, etc.

Your evidence could include stories about:

people or groups in your community that you know that are at a greater risk of harm
what crime, nuisance and other harm you have observed in your community
what harm you worry could happen if the store opened
if it is a renewal, what harm has happened in your community since the store opened

In the past, people have objected because:

a community notice board was next to the proposed store, and they were concerned it would not be safe to approach anymore
there was a lack of lighting outside
people were known to drink in the carpark
advertising and signage was too brightly coloured and appealed to children
signs for cheap alcohol attracted those at highest risk
applicant wanted a licence in a high-deprivation neighbourhood with a higher risk of harm and a vulnerable community
the store previously sold alcohol to someone who was drunk, the person then drunk drove and died
a neighbour was a recovering alcoholic, and they were concerned the temptation would be too much
a primary school walking-bus passed the store every day
there were regularly broken bottles and damage around the store front
the store was selling cheap single serve alcohol, lollies, cigarettes and vaping products that would be appealing to youth
they were concerned there would be an increase in break-ins and ramraids

Each Objector has their own reasons and their own story to tell and every voice and concern is valid. It is important to be heard and have your evidence considered by the DLC.

If you have questions, you can get in touch with your Council’s District Licencing team or contact your local Community Law Centre to see if they can help with writing your statement of evidence.

Make sure your file your Statement of Evidence with Council by the date they give you.

Once you have filed your evidence, make sure you appear at the hearing, so that you can present your evidence and answer questions about it. This will make sure the District Licencing Committee takes your concerns seriously and you know your voice has been heard.

HEARINGS

After filing your evidence, comes the hearing. Hearings are generally held at a Council office but sometimes might be on a marae or in a community hall.

DLCs will only give weight to Objections where the Objector appears at the hearing to present evidence and answer questions, so it is important to be there.

If you have not been given a specific time to present your evidence in advance of the hearing, contact your local DLC to request a schedule for the days of the hearing. If the DLC is not communicative with a timeline, contact the Community Law team to ask for help.

Make sure you are familiar with your Objection and Statement of Evidence so that you are comfortable answering questions about it. If you can, print out a copy and bring it with you to refer to, including any attachments to it.

Try to show up 10 minutes before the hearing starts or your scheduled time to speak, so you can introduce yourself to staff (especially the Secretary who will be in charge of process on the day) and understand the plan for the day and where to sit. Letting the Secretary know you have arrived is very helpful and will assist the day to run smoothly.

The DLC will sit at the front of the room and opposite them will be the Applicant. The Inspector, Police and Public Health will sit to one side of the DLC and Objectors along the other side. Council staff will also be there.

You can have a representative speak for you or represent yourself. You can also call witnesses. Witnesses might be experts in alcohol harm, have personal experiences with it, or could be an Objector that was denied Standing.

The Hearing will start with everyone standing as the DLC enters, then sit when they sit. The Chair of the DLC will provide an overview of the application, evidence and objections and ask everyone to introduce themselves. Each person will stand to do this.

Once the Chair has concluded their opening statement, the Applicant will outline their position then be sworn in to present their evidence.

As each person has finished speaking, the DLC will ask any questions they have about the evidence they have been presented with. Please note, what is described here is the usual practice. The DLC can change the order of events if it thinks this will be of assistance.

The Inspector, Police and Public Health will then present their evidence and answer questions.

Objectors will then each be sworn in to present their evidence and answer questions.

The Applicant then gets to speak again about any matters arising from the evidence.

At the conclusion, the DLC will reserve their decision so that they can consider the evidence and deliberate.

All Objectors will be sent the decision of the DLC once it is made.

CONCERNED WITH A CURRENT LICENCED PREMISES?

If there is no licence renewal process about to happen but you are concerned that someone is selling alcohol and it is causing harm to your community (e.g. violence, vandalism, drinking in public, disturbance, noise, or other community harm), you can report the issue to your local Council and Police. Reporting your concerns may mean that when the licence comes up for renewal there is evidence of a history of harm from the licence and increase the chances the renewal is refused.

SUMMARY

Watch for notices in your community
Pair up with Community Groups in your area to strengthen your responses
Familiarise yourself with how to write an Objection and Statement of Evidence, include; Address of the store, Your name, Address and contact details, Grounds of the Act, Evidence of concerns and your story,
Contact your local Council or Community Law Centre if you have questions
Show up to the hearing and have your voice heard
Signature, date and file within time!

Kia kaha, Kia māia, Kia manawanui

ALCOHOL HARM REDUCTION PROJECT

Several Community Law Centres across Aotearoa are involved in an Alcohol Harm Reduction Project. The Project runs education programmes to build capacity and capability, and empower communities to respond and partake in District Licensing processes. The Project is funded by Te Whatu Ora/Health New Zealand.

As part of this Project, there are local Champions within the below five Community Law Centres who specialise in this area of law and can help you with writing your Objection and preparing your Evidence. They can also help answer any questions you may have about the DLC process.

Auckland
South Auckland
Waikato
Wellington / Hutt Valley
Canterbury / West Coast

The aim of the Project is to build your knowledge, confidence, capacity and capability to get involved in alcohol licensing processes. Hopefully you will then be able to help empower others within your community to do the same!

If you don’t live in one of the above areas, still reach out to your local Community Law Centre or the Project directly at the Contact Form above for help. It is always worth reaching out and speaking up!