Pitwatter Alcohol Abuse

Mr ROB STOKES (Pittwater) [5.18 p.m.]: My community of Pittwater has a drinking problem. Tragically, our drinking problem is most clearly and publicly manifest in our young people, and the problem is particularly bad during the approaching summer months. Places like Village Park, Mona Vale; Berry Reserve, Narrabeen; Barrenjoey Road, Newport; and Avalon Village have become plagued by drunken teens putting themselves and others in danger. This is not only a nuisance. There have been deaths as a result of excessive alcohol consumption. Two boys have died in separate incidents in Mona Vale in recent months. Out of the village centres, residents are too scared to hold parties for young people because of the fear of gatecrashers and the risks posed by drunken teenagers getting out of control.

Our streetscapes are marred by graffiti vandalism, and infrastructure such as bus stops and street signs are constantly destroyed. I am sick of taking my little children on early morning walks on a weekend past broken bottles, smashed windows, vomit and rubbish left by the young drunks the night before, and having to explain to my six-year-old boy why people write things on other people's property.

In 2006-07 the riot squad was called to incidents in Pittwater on more than 60 occasions. The next year it was almost 40 occasions. Most of these incidents were parties where groups of teenagers—many under 18—were drunk, violent, abusive and a danger to themselves and to others. Yet in the same year only 13, and subsequently three, infringements were issued to children for under-age drinking. This is clear evidence that our laws on under-age drinking are unclear, inconsistent and not taken seriously. On one occasion late last year the New South Wales police riot squad attended a party in Mona Vale and confiscated a large amount of alcohol from under-age drinkers, with a 17-year-old charged with resisting arrest. At the same time on the same night a party at North Avalon attended by a large crowd of under-age drinkers got out of control and a police officer needed medical help after trying to help quell the brawl.

Social views about alcohol have deteriorated. There has been a massive cultural shift that has seen the national age of alcohol initiation fall from 19 to 15½ years over the past 50 years. By the age of 14 around 90 per cent of children have tried alcohol and the rate of drinking at harmful levels by 12- to 17-year-olds has doubled in the past two decades. Alcohol accounts for 13 per cent of all deaths among 14- to 17-year-old Australians, and one Australian teenager dies and more than 60 are hospitalised every week from alcohol-related causes. There is no safe level of drinking for children. Therefore, it is little surprise that the latest Federal Government guidelines emphasise that the safest option for teenagers is to delay the onset of drinking for as long as possible.

This is a big problem. It is time that our laws on under-age drinking were clarified—not so much strengthened; there is no point applying stiffer penalties if no penalties are issued—to send a clear message that under-age drinking is a crime and will not be tolerated. Therefore, I think it is wrong—it is appalling—that it is legal in New South Wales for people to supply a minor with alcohol provided they have the consent, actual or implied, of the parent or guardian. Section 117 of the Liquor Act 2007 permits a person to supply liquor to a minor with the authorisation of the minor's parent or guardian on private or unlicensed premises. However, there is no legislative guidance as to what form this authorisation must take or how long it is to last. In other words, the law allows the service of alcohol to children at parties or private homes without parental supervision so long as the child's parents say it is okay—either verbally or by implication. Frankly, that is not okay with me, and it is not okay with many people in my community.

In 2008 the Queensland Government identified a similar ambiguity in that State's liquor Act and took responsible action to amend the legislation, making it illegal for anyone to supply alcohol to a minor without their parent or guardian's direct supervision. These changes have been applauded by parents, police and advocacy groups, who believe they are an important step in combating the increasing problems associated with under-age drinking. New South Wales can learn a lot from Queensland and the way it has started to tackle this problem. The laws in New South Wales need to be as clear, tough and simple as those in Queensland. Our current laws are murky, ambiguous and deficient. If someone is under the age of 18, the only person who should be able to serve them alcohol is their parent or guardian.

An amendment to the Liquor Act prohibiting any person other than a minor's parent or guardian from supplying liquor would greatly strengthen the objectives of the Act. It would reduce the level of access minors have to alcohol, send a clear message that it is unsafe for children to drink, and simplify the duties placed on those supervising children. Without such changes, our hospitals, courts, emergency services and communities will be left exposed to the escalating impact of under-age drinking and our young people will be denied the protection they deserve. This is simply too important and too serious an issue to ignore. I implore the Government to adopt the responsible approach taken in Queensland, following the prompting of the Liberal National Party in that State, and make much-needed amendments to the Liquor Act to ensure that younger generations are protected now and into the future.