City of Sydney
Town Hall House
456 Kent Street
Sydney NSW 2000

Executive summary .............................................................................................................2
1. Introduction ......................................................................................................................5
2. Liquor Act: Part 1 - Preliminary .......................................................................................6
3. Liquor Act: Part 3 – Licences ..........................................................................................7
4. Liquor Act: Part 4 – Licensing procedures and related matters ....................................10
5. Liquor Act: Part 5 – Regulation and control of licensed premises ................................13
6. Liquor Act: Part 6 – Miscellaneous Offences and Regulatory Controls ........................14
7. Liquor Act: Part 8 – Liquor Accords ..............................................................................15
8. Gaming and Liquor Administration Act 2007: Section 17 – Secrecy ............................16
9. Additional Comments ....................................................................................................17
10. References ..................................................................................................................18
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Format of the City of Sydney Submission
This submission reviews the Gaming and Liquor Administration Act and the Liquor Act
2007. The Liquor Act review component follows the structure of the Liquor Act 2007. It is divided into the following sections:
1. Introduction
2. Liquor Act: Part 1 - Preliminary - Regulating market entry and business operations
3. Liquor Act: Part 3 – Licences
4. Liquor Act: Part 4 – Licensing procedures and related matters
5. Liquor Act: Part 5 – Regulation and control of licensed premises
6. Liquor Act: Part 6 – Miscellaneous Offences and Regulatory Controls
7. Liquor Act: Part 8 – Liquor Accords
8. Gaming and Liquor Administration Act 2007: Section 17 – Secrecy
9. Additional comments
10. References
The City of Sydney submission to the Liquor Act contains a number of recommendations across a range of areas within the Act. These include and are detailed by section:
Liquor Act: Part 1 - Preliminary - Regulating market entry and business operations

Recommendation 1: That Section 3 Objects of the Act includes a fourth objective which is “To minimise both immediate and secondary impacts of the sale of alcohol, including crime, anti-social behaviour, environmental impacts and impacts on public health.
”

Recommendation 2: That a yearly ‘report card’ or similar reporting system that summarises the ways in which the objects of the act are being achieved is introduced.

Recommendation 3: That a definition of “cumulative impact” is provided within the Liquor Act 2007 Section 4 Definitions.
Liquor Act: Part 3 – Licences

Recommendation 4: That it is clarified that venues can apply for an “on premises” (entertainment venue) licence specifically related to premises where the primary purpose is the provision of live music only and that appropriate conditions that are specific to these premises are applied.

Recommendation 5: That section 13 is amended to enable extended trading for on-premises and small bar licences, alongside hotel and club licences during declared special events.

Recommendation 6: That amendments be made to the planning laws, possibly through a State Environmental Planning Policy, to ensure that premises operating pursuant to an extension of hours under section 13 are not doing so in breach of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979.

Recommendation 7: That the provisions relating to licence conditions for hotel licences, club licences, small bar licences and on-premises licences be amended to include a mandatory patron capacity condition.

Recommendation 8: That OLGR provides a clear patron capacity calculator based on relevant building standards to licensees to ensure they are able to consistently and accurately provide this information.

Recommendation 9: That the Primary Service Authorisation is amended to ensure it is specific in its application to restaurants and cafes

Recommendation 10: Under section 20B, the maximum capacity for the Small
Bar licence is increased from 60 to 120 patrons.

Recommendation 11: That all small bars be licensed by OLGR solely through the “small bar” licence category to improve transparency.
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
Recommendation 12: That a new section “28A On-premises motor vessel miscellaneous conditions” is created to impose conditions dealing with the impacts that arise specifically in relation to this type of licence.

Recommendation 13: That a disembarkation plan of management is added as a retrospective and required condition for all licensed motor vessels.

Recommendation 14: That it is a condition for all licensed motor vessels to have disembarkation locations to be authorised by the relevant local authority (e.g. council) and police commander.

Recommendation 15: That all motor vessels are required to have CCTV, especially at the bar area and to maintain footage for a period of 28 days to confirm compliance with responsible service of alcohol.

Recommendation 16: That premises with a packaged liquor license, bottle shops and premises that sell alcohol for consumption off the premises: Display a map of local alcohol free zones, and cannot sell before 10am.

Recommendation 17: That a system is created which provides a vetted panel of licensees who would licence very small scale events for a nominal fee. This would improve the ability of small event holders to have a licence as part of their event.
Liquor Act: Part 4 – Licensing procedures and related matters

Recommendation 18: That a licensing panel is established with representation from OLGR, NSW Police and local Council to review and determine liquor licence applications and revisions where there is a high level of community concern, or for applications subject to a specific level of concern due to, for example, the
Environment and Venue Assessment Tool rating. This panel would be open to the public to make verbal submissions.

Recommendation 19: That section 46 is amended to introduce a time limited licensing permit system to ensure that liquor licences (like a driver’s licence) are regularly renewed and not issued in perpetuity. The City recommends that licences would be required to be renewed at least every three years, with shorter periods for premises which do not demonstrate good management.

Recommendation 20: That Community Impact Statements, especially regarding high impact premises are checked for factual accuracy by OLGR staff, and that aspects of the application are signed off by the local police licensing sergeant.
That Community Impact Statements are notified by OLGR to local councils, police and the local community, rather than the applicant to ensure consistency in notification processes.

Recommendation 21: That new Saturation Zone Provisions are created in the
Liquor Act and that they would be able to be established for a period of three years. That consideration is given to cumulative impact through both the planning and liquor licensing regimes, as has been the case in Victoria, and that consideration is given to statutory anti-clustering measures.
Liquor Act: Part 5 – Regulation and control of licensed premises

Recommendation 22: That a process is created to enable some complaints to progress to mediation.

Recommendation 23: The noise complaint process be clarified and refined to improve efficiency and effectiveness, thereby improving public confidence in the system and removing misconceptions in relation to who is the responsible regulatory entity for these matters.
Liquor Act: Part 6 – Miscellaneous Offences and Regulatory Controls

Recommendation 24: That all staff employed by a licensed premises possess a
Responsible Service of Alcohol Competency Card (RSACC) which requires a person to have completed recent training in the Responsible Service of Alcohol.
A person without an RSACC cannot be employed in a licensed venue.
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
Recommendation 25: That the Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority has the authority to suspend or revoke a bar worker’s RSACC where they commit an offence that breaches their RSA requirements. If an RSACC is suspended or revoked, the individual will be unable to work in any licensed venue in NSW until such time as their Competency Card is re-instated.

Recommendation 26: That the “Safer Bars” or similar training is required of all staff inside licensed premises trading after 1am. This has been evaluated in the international literature to significantly reduced on-premises assaults. Importantly, all venue staff require training, not only security staff.

Recommendation 27: That some of the key provisions applied to licensed premises in the Kings Cross Precinct could be applied to those premises within the proposed “saturation zone”.
Liquor Act: Part 8 – Liquor Accords

Recommendation 28: That membership of a local liquor accord is a mandatory condition on all current and new liquor licences.

Recommendation 29: That, under the direction of the Director-General, members of a local liquor accord are required to contribute towards the costs associated with measures to minimise or prevent alcohol-related violence or antisocial behaviour or other alcohol-related harm in the area covered by the local liquor accord. That the contribution is proportional to the premises revenue.

Recommendation 30: That other late-trading (unlicensed) premises, such as hot takeaway food, convenience stores, backpacker accommodation and other unlicensed premises be permitted to become members of a local liquor accord.

Recommendation 31: That liquor accords are required to use a patron code of conduct which discourages all violence.
Gaming and Liquor Administration Act 2007: Section 17 – Secrecy

Recommendation 32: That local government is included in the list of exempt bodies under Section 17 (7) of the Gaming and Liquor Administration Act.
Additional comments

Recommendation 33: That a wind-down hour, requiring management to take such steps as ceasing sale of alcohol, not allowing entry of any additional patrons, reducing the volume of music etc. in the final hour before closing, is applied as a condition on all licensed premises trading after 1am, including those premises trading 24 hours, who would be required to cease service of alcohol for a one hour period between 1am and 6am.

Recommendation 34: That provision of Responsible Service of Alcohol marshals in high impact, late-trading large licensed premises, with an extended trading authority are applied as a new licence condition.

Recommendation 35: That the collection of alcohol volume and wholesale data from all licensed premises in NSW is resumed, and that this is used to inform decision making regarding cumulative impact. This can also be used to inform research on the positive social and community outcomes generated by live music and performance activity.

Recommendation 36: That all premises trading after 12am undertake an annual
Mystery shopper audit of their premises by a private provider to improve compliance with the Liquor Act.

Recommendation 37: That all licensed premises trading after 12am have a designated premises manager with appropriate training and skills on duty after
12am. That the designated premises manager is contactable by members of the community, police and local council.

Recommendation 38: That touting for business on public streets, parks or plazas is not permitted by licensed premises, and that this is included as a condition on all liquor licenses.
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The City of Sydney is a local government area of 26.5 square km with 180,000 residents and some of the greatest residential densities in Australia. The City of Sydney also contains one of the greatest densities of very late-trading licensed premises in Australia.
As at October 2012, it contains:

2,268 licensed premises

286 can trade 24 hours

778 have extended trading hours authorisations

665 trade after midnight
As Austra lia’s global city, the City of Sydney generates 7.5% of Australia’s gross domestic product. The night-time economy makes a significant contribution to our economy, which in 2009 was estimated at $15.1 billion, representing 28.4% of all jobs i .
The City recognises the important role that licensed premises play in our city. Well run, safe licensed premises should be part of any global city, but there must be an appropriate balance between public safety, residential amenity and economic growth.
In 2011 the City of Sydney commenced work on OPEN Sydney: future directions for
Sydney at night. The development of the strategy was based on a wide consultation with the public on what they want for their city after dark, and on a substantial new body of research into Sydney’s night-time economy. The OPEN Sydney strategy and action plan was endorsed by Council in February 2013 and provides a 17 year plan to transform
Sydney at night and address the many structural issues related to alcohol and its impacts. This includes recommendations for legislative reform within the Liquor Act 2007.
The City of Sydney has also recently established a Live Music and Live Performance
Taskforce to guide the City’s preparation of a strategy to support the sector in Sydney.
The Taskforce is considering a range of proposals, including recommendations regarding liquor licensing and the Liquor Act 2007.
The City recognises that some significant measures have already been introduced through the Liquor Act 2007. Between 25 June 2009 and 24 December 2012, the City of
Sydney has had three discrete areas subject to a liquor freeze under the Liquor Act
2007. Since December 2012, two areas are still subject to the liquor freeze, and liquor licence applications in the rest of the City of Sydney are subject to a trial of the
Environment and Venue Assessment Tool. .
The City of Sydney has also been the site of a range of new measures on licensed premises in Kings Cross following the tragic death of Thomas Kelly on 9 July 2012. The
City recognises that these legislative changes, accompanied by a range of new initiatives delivered by state and local government, may have contributed to reductions alcoholrelated assaults in Kings Cross. Much work remains to be done.
Whilst alcohol-related violence is on the decline in the City of Sydney, the rates have not dropped as quickly as other types of crime. High profile, alcohol-related public violence risks Sydney’s reputation as a safe city for local and visitor populations. This perception also has an economic impact on whether business chooses to locate in our city.
The City welcomes the opportunity to comment on the review of the Gaming and Liquor
Administration Act and the Liquor Act 2007. We recognise the crucial role that good legislation, governance and enforcement plays in ensuring that our City is a safe place to live, work and visit into the future.
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Section 3 Objects of Act
The objects of the NSW Liquor Act as described currently are as follows:
 to regulate and control the sale, supply and consumption of liquor in a way that is consistent with the expectations, needs and aspirations of the community,
 to facilitate the balanced development, in the public interest, of the liquor industry, through a flexible and practical regulatory system with minimal formality and technicality,
 to contribute to the responsible development of related industries such as the live music, entertainment, tourism and hospitality industries.
The third object of the act explicitly states that it is to support live music but currently there is no clear evidence or accountability on how this is achieved by the Office of
Liquor Gaming and Racing (OLGR) or the Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority
(ILGA).
Other liquor acts globally include provisions about reducing violence as a core objective of the act. Some also include health related provisions. For example, the Licensing
(Scotland) Act 2005 includes a broader range of provisions as objectives of the Act, these include:

Preventing crime and disorder

Securing public safety

Preventing public nuisance

Protecting and improving public health

Protecting children from harm
Recommendation 1: That Section 3 Objects of the Act includes a fourth object - “to minimise both immediate and secondary impacts of the sale of alcohol, including crime, antisocial behaviour, environmental impacts and impacts on public health”.
Recommendation 2: That a yearly ‘report card’ or similar reporting system that summarises the ways in which the objects of the act are being achieved is introduced.
Section 4 Definitions
At present there is no definition of cumulative impact within the Liquor Act.
It is recognised that the impact on surrounding areas in relation to the behaviour of patrons from a number of premises located in close proximity to one another is greater than the impact of individual premises.
With the introduction of liquor freeze and the trial of an Environment and Venue
Assessment Tool to respond to this issue, it is now time to create appropriate definitions within the Act.
Recommendation 3: That a definition of “cumulative impact” is provided within the
Liquor Act 2007 Section 4 Definitions. A definition of cumulative impact could be:
‘The potential impact on the promotion of the licensing objectives where there are a number of licensed premises concentrated in one area. This is where the number, type and density of licensed premises are unusually high, serious problems of noise, nuisance and disorder can occur outside or some distance away from the licensed premises in question. This is described as the cumulative impact of all premises taken together’ ii . The
City notes that the presence or absence of late night transport should also be a consideration in assessing cumulative impact.
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Section 10 Types of licences and authorisations conferred by licence
There are currently seven types of licences:
 hotel licence
 club licence
 small bar licence
 on-premises licence
 packaged liquor licence
 producer/wholesaler licence
 limited licence
Live music is important to the cultural life of the City of Sydney. Many venues providing live music and performance as their primary function operate in a specific licensing context. This context is more similar to theatre venues and arts centres, which differs from venues for which live performance is only one part of their overall offer, such as hotels, small bars or clubs that may occasionally provide live music as part of a broader offer.
When the primary function of the venue is live music, the City supports the strong promotion of the existing “on-premises (entertainment)” licence. Such a licence may be appropriately linked to venue capacity and provide special consideration for extended trading hours and security requirements. The improved provisions and promotion of the on-premises (entertainment venue) category would reflect the current objects of the Act, which include the responsible development of the live music industry.
Recommendation 4: That it is clarified that venues can apply for an “on premises”
(entertainment venue) licence specifically related to the provision of live music only and that appropriate conditions that are specific to these premises are applied.
Section 13 Special events extended trading period for hotels and clubs
Under the current provision, only hotels and clubs are able to be granted extended trading hours during special events (being an event that the Minister considers to be of regional, state or national significance).
As part of the OPEN Sydney strategy public consultation, many people wanted later trading hours for restaurants and cafes especially during major events. The City supports the extension of trading hours for licensed restaurants and cafes (on-premises) and small bars during major events.
However, this provision highlights the issue of the uncertain interaction of the provisions of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 and the Liquor Act 2007.
While a special event may be declared and hours extended for the purposes of the
Liquor Act 2007 there is no automatic extension of premises’ approved hours of operation under the planning regime. As a result, premises may be encouraged to trade in breach of the conditions of their development consent, possibly in the mistaken belief that the extension of hours under the Liquor Act 2007 entitles them to legally do so. To facilitate extended hours during special events, provision should be made under the planning laws to enable this and provide clarity to operators, regulators and the community. To this end the City supports amendment to be made to the planning laws to enable all premises with extended trading on their liquor licence, to also have extended trading on their development approval.
The City does not support the extension of trading hours for packaged liquor licenced premises during special events due to the significant impacts of “pre-fuelling” during major events. The City would support shorter trading hours for packaged liquor licences during major events to mitigate the impacts of pre-fuelling.
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Recommendation 5: That section 13 is amended to enable extended trading for onpremises and small bar licences, alongside hotel and club licences during declared special events.
Recommendation 6: That amendments be made to the planning laws, possibly through a State Environmental Planning Policy, to ensure that premises operating pursuant to an extension of hours under section 13 are not doing so in breach of the Environmental
Planning and Assessment Act 1979.
Patron capacity licence conditions
There is currently no recording of patron capacities on liquor licences in NSW. The provision of the patron capacity on the liquor licence is standard practice in jurisdictions such as British Columbia, Canada. The City of Sydney supports a licence condition requiring premises to have a maximum patron capacity. We further support this capacity being calculated in accordance with the provisions of the National Construction Code
(formerly the Building Code of Australia) for those premises which do not already have a maximum patron capacity nominated on their development consent.
A patron capacity calculator should be provided to licensees to allow them to easily calculate their maximum patron capacity and this self-nominated calculation should be the subject of regular audits by OLGR. For those premises which are already subject to a maximum patron capacity under their development consent the liquor licence maximum capacity should be no greater than that amount (although it may be less).
Recommendation 7: That the provisions relating to licence conditions for hotel licences, club licences, small bar licences and on-premises licences be amended to include a mandatory patron capacity condition.
Recommendation 8: That OLGR provides a clear patron capacity calculator based on relevant building standards to licensees to ensure they are able to consistently and accurately provide this information.
Section 20 A, B, C Small Bar Licences
The City of Sydney welcomes the flexibility in the Liquor Act which has enabled small bars to be established in NSW. There are approximately 70 small bar style venues in the
City of Sydney. We also welcome the creation of a separate small bar licence category which came into effect on 1 July 2013. We have long asked for this type of specific licence.
At present there are three ways in which small bar style venues can obtain a licence.

General Bar (Hotel) licence

On-premises (restaurant) licence (with primary service authorisation)

Small bar licence
The City of Sydney supports a specific class of licence for small bars, but recommends adjustments to ensure it effectively meets the needs of the industry, the public and the objectives of the Act. At present, the capacity limit of 60 persons for a small bar licence is too restrictive, encouraging small bars to apply for an on-premises (restaurant) licence.
We believe that small bars should only be permitted through the small bar licence to make the character of the premise clearer to local residents, but the small bar licence category should be revised to permit patron capacity of 120 persons.
To date the majority of small bar style venues in the City have an on-premises
(restaurant) licence with a primary service authorisation. Unfortunately this type of licence is creating confusion in the community and enables “venue morphing”. It is easy for what appears to be a restaurant or café to become a small bar. This is confusing for the community and sometimes it is unclear for Council when assessing development applications.
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The City believes the primary use of such premises under the on-premises (restaurant) licence must be that of a restaurant with seated dining and substantial food service available at all times. In this regard the number and location of tables and chairs provided for seated dining must be generally in accordance with the approved floor plans. It would be more transparent for all in the community, and allow for more effective regulation of this sector, if premises which intend to serve alcohol without requiring the provision of a meal obtained a “small bar” licence.
In Western Australia the Small Bar Licence has a maximum capacity of 120, and is providing positive outcomes for the Western Australian live music and performance sector. The current capping of allowable capacity for this licence at 60 limits the impact that this licence type can have in achieving object 3 of the Act (support for live music) in that a venue of such low capacity is usually unable to support the programming of live music or performance beyond the inclusion of a single unamplified performer. The expansion of the small bar licence to include venues of capacities up to 120 would exponentially increase the impact that this licence category can have in achieving the stated goal of the Liquor Act in supporting live music.
Recommendation 9: That the Primary Service Authorisation is amended to ensure it is specific in its application to restaurants and cafes.
Recommendation 10: Under section 20B, the maximum capacity for the small bar licence is increased from 60 to 120 patrons.
Recommendation 11: That all small bars be licensed by OLGR solely through the small bar licence category to improve transparency.
Section 28A On-premises motor vessel miscellaneous conditions (new)
There are a range of impacts generated by licensed motor vessels (party boats), especially at points of disembarkation. The regulation of responsible service of alcohol is also very difficult to assess due to the restricted access of the vessel. The City of Sydney would welcome the opportunity to work with OLGR and NSW Police in drafting guidelines for a disembarkation plan of management.
Recommendation 12: That a new section “28A On-premises motor vessel miscellaneous conditions” is created to impose conditions dealing with the impacts that arise specifically in relation to this type of licence.
Recommendation 13: That a disembarkation plan of management is added as a retrospective and required condition for all licensed motor vessels.
Recommendation 14: That it is a condition for all licensed motor vessels to have disembarkation locations to be authorised by the relevant local authority (e.g. council) and police commander.
Recommendation 15: That all motor vessels are required to have CCTV, especially at the bar area and to maintain footage for a period of 28 days to confirm compliance with responsible service of alcohol.
Section 29A Packaged liquor licence conditions (new)
The City of Sydney has a compassionate and holistic approach to people who are street drinkers. This includes Public Space Liaison Officers who provide assistance to vulnerable street drinkers and alcohol restrictions on public streets and parks. To delay the onset of drinking episodes, the City supports a later trading commencement time for all premises selling packaged liquor. The City also supports the display of maps of alcohol free zones in all packaged liquor premises.
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Recommendation 16: That premises with a packaged liquor license, bottle shops and premises that sell alcohol for consumption off the premises:

Display a map of local alcohol free zones.

Cannot sell before 10am.
Section 37 A (new) Limited Licences - Special event/short term licences
Feedback from the cultural sector has indicated to the City that there are opportunities to simplify or improve the process for event or short term licensing. Currently non-licensed organisations who want to program events with a licensed element are required to align with a licensee in order to gain a short term licence. The sector has communicated to us that:

It can be difficult for small organisations or groups to understand the best way to find licensees willing to partner with them in order to receive a licence for the event.

The timeframes required for application and processing of short term licences is often longer than the time available to organise events, particular for small scale, grassroots and community events.

The administration required for applying for such a licence is disproportionate to the impact or level of alcohol being sold, and often difficult for small, under resourced organisations to decipher.
Recommendation 17: That a system is created which provides a vetted panel of licensees who would licence very small scale events for a nominal fee. This would improve the ability of small event holders to have a licence as part of their event.
Section 45 Decision of the Authority in relation to licence application
Section 45 mandates that applications cannot be granted unless development consent under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, where required, has been obtained and is in force. Often the dual systems are confusing for applicants to navigate.
Conditions can sometime be contradictory or not well aligned.
There needs to be greater clarity regarding the relationship between NSW Office of
Liquor, Gaming and Racing and the Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority. Local authorities and the public need to be clearer on how decisions are being made, and there needs to be improved transparency in these processes. The length of time that ILGA takes to make a determination is also an issue, affecting residents and local business operators alike. The lack of public awareness of the approval process is a problem and the City encourages far better transparency and communication with the public regarding this process. The City also recommends the meetings of ILGA to be open to the public.
The City’s preferred option in order to ensure decision making is more transparent is to form a Licensing Panel for certain liquor licence applications. England has a devolved licensing regime, where local government is the licensing authority. Within the City of
Westminster, a Licensing Sub Committee hears liquor licences applications and has the full power to grant or not grant a liquor license (in other councils this may be called a licensing “review”). The subcommittee members include 3 councillors (one of whom is the chair), one council legal representative, the council’s licensing policy officer and one council secretary. New premises and those requesting increases in patron numbers, capacity or trading hours require a formal hearing at the licensing subcommittee. Once the license application is introduced at subcommittee, the applicants make a statement about their application, police make a statement and council environmental health staff
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provides a statement. Residents and other interested parties are then able to make statements regarding the application, and are able to ask questions directly of the applicants.
In assessing the license application, Council officers prepare a comprehensive report, inspect the premises to determine maximum patron capacity and note a range of factors including proximity and type of existing licensed premises, residential and other sensitive premise types.
All liquor licence applicants need to prepare an operating schedule for the premises which include trading hours and how the four licensing objectives are met. If there are no objections to the operating schedule, the licensing authority can approve the application, and the details of the operation schedule become conditions on the license. There is a right of appeal to the Magistrates’ Court against the decision of the Licensing Sub-
Committee by any party to the original hearing. Those premises seeking only a minor variation, and who agree to the conditions imposed on their licence, are not required to go through a ‘review’/formal Licensing Sub-Committee process.
In NSW, the current process for determination of liquor licence applications offers limited opportunity for community participation and involvement, including limited involvement for Council and the Police. Applications are made with only limited information provided to Councils and the community, submissions are only able to be made for a limited period of time, no advice is provided as to the subsequent progress of applications and no notification is given to Councils or the community when a decision is made. There is very rarely any opportunity for community involvement in the form of verbal submissions to the determining Authority, no opportunity to observe deliberations in meetings and the information about decisions of the Authority is not widely publicised. It is suggested that there should be a more public and accessible process mandated where a high level of community concern is identified in relation to a particular application or for applications subject to a specific level of concern due to, for example, the Environment and Venue
Assessment Tool rating.
Recommendation 18: That a licensing panel is established with representation from
OLGR, NSW Police and local Council to review, consider and determine liquor licence applications and revisions where there is a high level of community concern or for applications subject to a specific level of concern due to, for example, the Environment and Venue Assessment Tool rating. This panel would be open to the public to make verbal submissions.
Section 46 Duration of licences
Many jurisdictions have some form of a licensing permit system, where liquor licences
(like drivers licences) are renewed on a periodic basis and not issued in perpetuity (as is the case in NSW). The current system does not provide adequate incentive for licensees to comply with their licence laws and conditions. Non-compliant, violent and regularly infringed premises would face regular mandatory reviews and potentially serious consequences, including reduction of trading hours or non-renewal of their licence.
Members of the community who suffer disturbance or amenity impacts from licensed premises would have the opportunity, at the time of regular reviews of those premises, to advise regulators of those issues and have them taken into account when decisions on renewals are made.
Liquor licences no longer in use or “dormant” licences would be closed off within the licensing system as the renewal system would keep check of those licences which are no longer active.
Precedents for this type of system exist in other jurisdictions such as:

British Columbia, Canada - liquor permits are issued for a period of one year, and must be renewed annually by the applicant.
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
New York State, USA – licence permits are time limited and must be renewed every two years.

The Netherlands – liquor licenses are renewed annually.

Paris – Nightclub licences are time limited for periods from 3months –to 2years maximum.

Queensland – extended trading hours after midnight are granted on a permit basis. Office of Liquor Gaming & Racing introduced this system in January 2009 for extended trading hours,

Western Australia – a system requiring licence renewal was introduced in 2012, with licences is renewed every 5 years.
Recommendation 19: That section 46 is amended to introduce a time limited licensing permit system to ensure that liquor licences (like a driver’s licence) are regularly renewed and not issued in perpetuity. The City recommends that licences would be required to be renewed at least every three years, with shorter periods for premises which do not demonstrate good management.
Section 48 Community Impact
The City believes that the public should be well informed of applications for new licensed premises and supports the use of Community Impact Statements on licensed premises to local residents, police and council. However, there is a lack of public confidence in this system which may arise in part due to incorrect or incomplete information being provided in these documents. The City is concerned that the statements made by applicants in the document are not being verified. For example, is the stated proximity to adjacent premises actually checked by OLGR officers in the course of assessing an application?
Recommendation 20: That Community Impact Statements, especially regarding high impact premises are checked for factual accuracy by OLGR staff, and that aspects of the application are signed off by the local police licensing sergeant. That Community Impact
Statements are notified by OLGR to local councils, police and the local community, rather than the applicant to ensure consistency in notification processes.
Division 1B Saturation Zone Provisions (new)
Liquor outlet density is strongly associated with increased levels of alcohol-related violence iii . The City has been a strong supporter of measures to address outlet density such as the current liquor freeze in two areas of the City. There are many international precedents of addressing outlet density. Some jurisdictions (such as British Columbia and local authorities in the United Kingdom) use “saturation zones” where no new licensed premises are permitted for a certain period of time. Other jurisdictions (such as
New York and Paris) use “cluster controls” which don’t permit new premises within a set number of metres from existing premises and other uses (eg: schools or hospitals).
The current trial in the City of Sydney and City Of Newcastle uses the Environmental
Venue Assessment Tool which applies a range of criteria in assessing licence applications, and aims to address issues such as cumulative impact. Following the completion of the current Environmental Venue Assessment Tool trial in 2014, the City recommends a “saturation zone” model which provides licensing authorities and local governments the capacity to create a more dispersed licensed environment. This tool also enables a more diverse licensing environment to emerge.
It is recommended that the provisions for saturation zones be enacted within the Liquor
Act 2007. As in England and Wales, the responsibility to create a saturation zone could be devolved to the local authority iv . Detail about the process for creating saturation zones could be created within the Liquor Regulation 2008.
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The provisions could work in a similar manner to existing “Alcohol Free Zone” provisions under the Local Government Act 1993, where councils are require to demonstrate clear evidence against criteria established by the research and undertake extensive public consultation and council approval prior to the creation of an alcohol free zone. Such criteria for the establishment of a “saturation zone” would include matters such as the number of licensed premises, the number of late-trading licensed premises, crime data in the precinct, availability of late night transport and other data in relation to social and amenity impacts of the sale of alcohol in the particular precinct (such as pedestrian counts, waste collection requirements etc).The types of premises included in the saturation zone could be determined by the local authority.
Approval of a saturation zone would require council resolution and sign off by the
Director-General, to ensure that it undergoes a transparent process.
Recommendation 21: That new Saturation Zone Provisions are created in the Liquor
Act and that they would be able to be established for a period of three years. That consideration is given to cumulative impact through both the planning and liquor licensing regimes, as has been the case in Victoria and that consideration is given to statutory anti-clustering measures.
Sections 79 Making of complaint / Section 80 Dealing with complaints / Section 81
Decision by Director-General in relation to complaint
Noise and amenity impacts from licensed premises are difficult to effectively deal with under the current regulatory regime. The intent of the Act and this particular section was to provide an administrative system where by matters that directly relate to the quiet and good order of the neighbourhood could easily be resolved.
The current process as outlined in OLGR’s Disturbance Fact Sheet is:
After receiving a complaint, the Director-General will consider the best means of addressing the issues raised by the complainant. This could include any of the following:
 encouraging the complainant and licensee(s) to resolve the issues between themselves
 mediation between the complainant and the licensee(s)
 seeking voluntary undertakings by the licensee(s)
 using regulatory powers under the Liquor Act to impose conditions on a licence and/or issuing directions to the licensee(s) and/or staff dealing with the complaint based on the evidence provided by the complainant and submissions from the licensee(s) involved; or
 convening a conference to obtain further information from the complainant and give the licensee an opportunity to respond.
Experience has shown that the current process is slow and inefficient with OLGR generally requiring large amounts of supporting information from residents and the City of Sydney. This is considered to be an overly formal approach to a process which was intended to be efficient and responsive to the needs of residents. This process should be simplified as much as possible to resolve matters as quickly as possible. Matters are sometimes dismissed without sufficient information being provided to the City about the reasons for doing so.
The sheer number and density of venues in many areas of the City also make it difficult for issues, particularly relating to the good order of the area surrounding licensed premises, to be targeted to particular venues to the level of proof often sought by OLGR.
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The current guidelines issued by the Environmental Protection Authority lists OLGR as the enforcement agency for noise arising from licensed venues. In most cases the City is requested to respond to music noise, patron noise arising from the venue and noise generated when people are leaving a venue. The Cit y’s Rangers and Licensed
Premises Coordinators can deal with these matters at the time however residents are advised to contact OLGR for longer term solutions for problematic venues.
EPA Guideline section 1.41 extract
The Director of Liquor and Gaming is responsible for dealing with disturbance complaints made in relation to hotels and other licensed venues including registered clubs. Section 79 of the Liquor Act 2007 provides an informal mechanism for complaints to be made (by residents, Police, local consent authorities and others) where the amenity of local neighbourhoods is unduly disturbed by the conduct of licensed premises and registered clubs (or their patrons).
The Director is responsible for resolving such complaints and may impose temporary or permanent conditions on the licence. Complaints to the Director can relate to noise emitted from licensed premises and registered clubs from within the physical structure of the premises and disturbance from patrons, especially when departing. Complaints may include other issues such as antisocial behaviour of patrons, including vandalism, method and timing of delivery vans, and disposal of refuse such as bottles, glassware and food packaging. In some instances the NSW Office of Liquor, Gaming and Racing
(OLGR) will consider complaints where the operation of the licensed premises or registered club is alleged to be the cause of an increased requirement for Police resources owing to its operation or the type of clientele it attracts.
The Council can make a section 79 complaint to the Director-General however the Act and OLGR guidelines are unclear as to the appropriate process to satisfy the Director of the need for mediation or conference.
Recommendation 22: That a process is created to enable some complaints to progress to mediation.
Recommendation 23: The noise complaint process be clarified and refined to improve efficiency and effectiveness, thereby improving public confidence in the system and removing misconceptions in relation to who is the responsible regulatory entity for these matters.
Section 99 Responsible sale, supply, service or promotion of liquor
Research conducted in five night-time entertainment districts across Australia, produced by the National Drug Law Enforcement Research Fund entitled ‘Patron Offending and
Intoxication in NightTime Entertainment Districts’ shows that levels of intoxication increased throughout the night across the five sites, resulting in a substantial proportion of the people in the night-time economy being heavily intoxicated, especially after 1am.
The report maintains that responsible service of alcohol (RSA) measures are insufficient and require more stringent regulation and more comprehensive and systematic enforcement regimes.
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Recommendation 24: That all staff employed by a licensed premises possess a
Responsible Service of Alcohol Competency Card (RSACC) which requires a person to have completed recent training in the Responsible Service of Alcohol. A person without an RSACC cannot be employed in a licensed venue.
Recommendation 25: That the Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority has the authority to suspend or revoke a bar worker’s RSACC where they commit an offence that breaches their RSA requirements. If an RSACC is suspended or revoked, the individual will be unable to work in any licensed venue in NSW until such time as their Competency
Card is re-instated.
Recommendation 26: That the “Safer Bars” or similar training is required of all staff inside licensed premises trading after 1am. This has been evaluated in the international literature to significantly reduced on-premises assaults. Importantly, all venue staff require training, not only security staff.
Section 116A Regulatory controls for licensed premises in Kings Cross Precinct
There are a range of licensing restrictions in effect in the Kings Cross Precinct. These include the following conditions on the license of most licensed premises in this area:
'round the clock' incident registers, promotion of late night transport options, service of alcohol to cease one hour before authorised closing time on weekends, CCTV systems,
'time outs' for 24-hour premises, glasses prohibited during general late-trading, notification of violent incidents to police, exclusion of outlaw motorcycle gangs, removal of litter from outside of premises, Responsible Service of Alcohol marshals to be on duty during weekend late-trading, prohibition of certain drinks during weekend late-trading, provision of alcohol sales data, and customer responsibility and advice.
The City would support the option to have similar restrictions applied to other problematic hotspots, as outlined under a “saturation zone” provision. The application of these provisions would be signed off by the Director-General.
Recommendation 27: That some of the key provisions applied to licensed premises in the Kings Cross Precinct could be applied to those premises within the proposed
“saturation zone”.
Section 134 – Terms of local liquor accords
The City of Sydney recognises the value of local liquor accords as part of a widespread approach to reducing alcohol-related harm and anti-social behaviour and providing local solutions to precinct-specific issues. OLGR states the benefits of local liquor accords can include improved compliance with liquor licensing laws, reduced under-age drinking, and reduced anti-social behaviour and alcohol-related crime and violence. It identifies membership to a local liquor accord as a mitigating factor when considering a new liquor licence under the Environment and Venue Assessment Tool.
The City recognises the benefits of local liquor accords and has a long history of working with the seven active liquor accords in the local government area. The City however notes the difficulties for liquor accord coordinators in generating participation from all licensed venues and in obtaining paid membership to support accord activities. To this end, the City supports mandatory accord membership as a condition on all licensed premises, with the ability for the liquor accord to generate contributions to resolve local problems associated with alcohol-related violence. The City also supports the extension of accord membership to other premises operating in the late night environment such as take away food premises, convenience stores, unlicensed strip clubs and other premises.
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An alternative to the liquor accord member contribution is a “late night levy”. The Late
Night Levy scheme was introduced in the United Kingdom in 2011, under the Police
Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011. It enables local authorities (council) to raise a contribution from late-opening alcohol suppliers towards policing the night-time economy. Local authorities can choose whether or not to exercise the levy, and the time period, to which the levy applies, however the licensing authority will also choose the period during which the levy applies. The levy charge is calculated according to rateable value. This system applies to the existing licence fee and the levy charge will be collected alongside the annual licence fee. The local police receive at least 70% of the net levy revenue. The licensing authority can retain up to 30% of the net levy revenue to fund other activities besides policing. There will be restrictions on the types of services that licensing authorities can fund with the levy revenue to ensure that levy is spent on tackling alcohol-related crime and disorder and services connected to the management of the night-time economy v .
The City notes that provision for venues to support measures to reduce alcohol-related violence exists within legislation drafted for premises ion the Kings Cross Precinct. This proposal suggests that this provision is able to be applied to “saturation zones”.
Additional measures to be undertaken by NSW liquor accords could include those that encourage licensed venues to promote respectful relationships between men and women within their premises and in the community. This is included in the Melbourne
Licensees Forum’s Licensed Premises Patron Code of Conduct that discourages against women (Point 32, p 20). Concrete examples could include not using advertising material and not having staff practices that sexualise or objectifies women.
Recommendation 28: That membership of a local liquor accord is a mandatory condition on all current and new liquor licences.
Recommendation 29: That, under the direction of the Director-General, members of a local liquor accord may be required to contribute towards the costs of state and local governments associated with measures to minimise or prevent alcohol-related violence or anti-social behaviour or other alcohol-related harm in the area covered by the local liquor accord. That the contribution is proportional to the premises revenue.
Recommendation 30: That other late-trading (unlicensed) premises, such as hot takeaway food, convenience stores, backpacker accommodation and other unlicensed premises be permitted to become members of a local liquor accord.
Recommendation 31: That liquor accords are required to use a patron code of conduct which discourages all violence.
Section 7 - Divulging of information
The City of Sydney and OLGR have a mutual interest in ensuring effective and efficient communication of information in relation to development applications, compliance activities and other general issues relating to licensed premises within the City’s local government area. NSW Police and OLGR are currently restricted from divulging information with local government as Councils are not specified as exempt under Section
17 (7) of the Gaming and Liquor Administration Act.
Recommendation 32: That local government is included in the list of exempt bodies under Section 17 (7) of the Gaming and Liquor Administration Act .
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Conditions on liquor licences
The City of Sydney strongly supports a number of standard conditions be imposed on different types of licensed premises to ensure equity across the many types of venues.
There are also a range of additional measures which could be included as a condition of a liquor licence to certain types of premises to reduce alcohol-related harm.
Recommendation 33: That a wind-down hour, requiring management to take such steps as ceasing sale of alcohol, not allowing entry of any additional patrons, reducing the volume of music etc. in the final hour before closing, is applied as a condition on all licensed premises trading after 1am, including those premises trading 24 hours, who would be required to cease service of alcohol for a one hour period between 1am and
6am.
Recommendation 34: That provision of Responsible Service of Alcohol marshals in high impact, late-trading large licensed premises, with an extended trading authority are applied as a new licence condition.
Recommendation 35: That the collection of alcohol volume and wholesale data from all licensed premises in NSW is resumed, and that this is used to inform decision making regarding cumulative impact. This can also be used to inform research on the positive social and community outcomes generated by live music and performance activity.
Recommendation 36: That all premises trading after 12am undertake an annual audit of their premises by a private provider to improve compliance with legislative provisions and licence conditions.
Recommendation 37: That all licensed premises trading after 12am have a designated premises manager with appropriate training and skills on duty after 12am. That the designated premises manager is contactable by members of the community, police and local council.
Recommendation 38: That touting for business on public streets, parks or plazas is not permitted by licensed premises, and that this is included as a condition on all liquor licenses.
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i Bevan, T., Turnham, A., Longwood, M & Hadfield P (2011) Sydney’s Night-time Economy:
Cost Benefit Analysis. A Report for the City of Sydney Council. i Preventative Health Taskforce (2009) Technical Paper 3: Preventing Alcohol-related harm in
Australia: a window of opportunity, Australia: the healthiest country by 2020, National
Preventative Health Strategy. Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing,
Canberra, Australia. ii Fenland District Council Cumulative Impact Policy http://www.fenland.gov.uk/aksfenland/images/att4409.pdf iv Roberts, M. Et al (2006) A continental ambience? Lessons in managing alcohol-related evening and night-time entertainment from four European capitals, Urban Studies 43(7):
1105-25 v Home Office (2011) Late Night Levy. https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/98126/latenight-levy.pdf
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