Source: Hapai Te Hauora
Hāpai Te Hauora says proposed reforms to alcohol laws risk taking Aotearoa backwards in efforts to reduce alcohol-related harm.
The Government has announced changes aimed at reducing regulatory barriers and making it easier for businesses to obtain alcohol licences. Ministers say the reforms reflect a belief that adults should be trusted to make their own choices in a free society.
But Hāpai Te Hauora Chief Operating Officer Jason Alexander says alcohol harm cannot be understood as simply a matter of individual responsibility.
These proposed changes undermine recent progress made through the Sale and Supply of Alcohol (Community Participation) Amendment Act 2023, which strengthened community voice in licensing decisions and supported the development and implementation of Local Alcohol Policies. Introducing reforms that move in a different direction raises questions about what priorities are now guiding New Zealand’s alcohol policy.
“Alcohol harm doesn’t happen in isolation. It is shaped by the environments we create – how widely alcohol is available, how it’s marketed, and how many outlets operate in a community,” Alexander said.
Alexander says decades of public health evidence show that policy settings play a major role in influencing alcohol harm, and that weakening existing safeguards risks undoing progress made to reduce harm.
One of the most significant proposed changes would restrict who can object to alcohol licence applications. Alexander says limiting objections to those within a Territorial Authority boundary risk excluding communities who may still be directly affected.
Territorial Authority boundaries do not always reflect the realities of communities, he said, noting that people may live just outside a boundary but still be physically close to a proposed outlet and experience the impacts. Hapū and iwi boundaries can also overlap multiple Territorial Authorities, raising questions about how those interests will be recognised if community voice is restricted.
Alexander also raised concerns about proposals that could expand the settings in which alcohol can be served.
Expanding the setting for the sale and supply of alcohol – from retail environments to personal services – risks further embedding alcohol into everyday life. Greater visibility, availability and normalisation are key drivers of alcohol harm, which is why strong regulation of licensing and marketing is essential.
Hāpai Te Hauora says any changes to alcohol regulation should strengthen, rather than weaken, public health protections and the ability for communities to have a say on harmful products in their community.
“If we want safer communities and healthier whānau, alcohol policy must continue to prioritise prevention,” Alexander said.
These proposed changes come at a time when the Government is placing significant emphasis on economic growth. While economic wellbeing matters, it must not come at the cost of public health. Weakening safeguards around alcohol will increase exposure to harm and place even greater pressure on whānau, communities, and an already stretched health system.
Alcohol harm is already estimated to cost Aotearoa New Zealand $9.1 billion every year through preventable illness, injury, lost productivity, and wider social harm. Any reform to alcohol policy must put health, wellbeing, and equity at the centre.
