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Speaker 1: Well, last we've been discussing the territory Labor. Government's completed

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Speaker 1: this three year review into the Liquor Act of twenty nineteen,

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Speaker 1: and one of the industries no doubt impacted in various

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Speaker 1: ways every time the Act changes is indeed the hospitality industry.

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Speaker 1: And joining me on the line right now, CEO of

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Speaker 1: Hospitality NT Alex Bruce, Good morning, Alex.

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Speaker 2: Good morning Katie, Alex.

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Speaker 1: Quite a number of things being sort of you know,

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Speaker 1: I looked at here and proposed including a moratorium on

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Speaker 1: new takeaway outlets. What do you make of the changes.

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Speaker 2: It looked like when they rewrote the Act in twenty nineteen,

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Speaker 2: the government put together a bit of a review group

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Speaker 2: and engaged us and everyone with differing views right across

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Speaker 2: the spectrums. So when the report came out yesterday, there

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Speaker 2: wasn't that many surprises in it For us. We would

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Speaker 2: have liked it to go harder in some areas than

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Speaker 2: where it's gone, but no doubt those on the other

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Speaker 2: side of the public policy debate would have liked it

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Speaker 2: ago in other areas that it hasn't as well. So

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Speaker 2: we've got I use the analogy. It looks like, you know,

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Speaker 2: there's two footy posts and the reviews kick the sensible

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Speaker 2: goal in the middle.

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Speaker 1: Somewhere where would you have liked it to have gone?

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Speaker 2: Hard As I look, we have some concerns, and we

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Speaker 2: do hit it from maybe a different position to what's

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Speaker 2: in the report about the sit and proper person test

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Speaker 2: and streamlineing that we have seen incidences where the sale

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Speaker 2: of businesses has been held up four months and months

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Speaker 2: and months, So the review hits that from another perspective

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Speaker 2: that says we need to have a look at it.

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Speaker 2: So yeah, we're very keen and able to sit sitting

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Speaker 2: in a room with everyone and flesh out how we

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Speaker 2: can make as much certainty as possible because that sit

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Speaker 2: and proper person test trigger happens after a willing buyer

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Speaker 2: and a willing seller have already met and agreed, So

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Speaker 2: you know, we need to get as much information out there,

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Speaker 2: very clear guidelines on what all of those considerations need

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Speaker 2: to be ahead of any contracts and handshakes being struck.

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Speaker 1: So I mean, just lay that out for us in

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Speaker 1: real simple person terms. For a lot of people, they're

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Speaker 1: going to be hearing this fit and you know, fit

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Speaker 1: and proper person reference for the first time ever as

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Speaker 1: you're saying it.

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Speaker 2: So when you go to sell your business, doesn't matter

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Speaker 2: whether you're a baker or a car mechanic business or

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Speaker 2: a willing buy A willing willing seller will come to

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Speaker 2: terms and then we'll toddle off and go can we

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Speaker 2: make can we get the necessary approvals to transfer the licenses?

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Speaker 2: So it's a bit of cart before the horse in

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Speaker 2: that regard. So when that buyer and seller are having

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Speaker 2: their discussions, they need to know full well ahead of

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Speaker 2: time what is a fit and proper person, because we

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Speaker 2: have had some incidences where we're seeing transactions delayed and

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Speaker 2: drawn out for quite a long time, and that's not

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Speaker 2: good for business, one way or the other. So it's

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Speaker 2: not a criticism of the process. It's just let's get

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Speaker 2: more information and clarity out there, and then it's by beware.

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Speaker 1: Alex, I want to ask you about you know about

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Speaker 1: the BDR. You and I have spoken about this on

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Speaker 1: so many occasions, and whether the BDR can be streamlined,

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Speaker 1: can be used in a better way so that it

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Speaker 1: is more effective. Are any of you know, is any

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Speaker 1: of what is being proposed fit what your expectations are?

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Speaker 2: We think so, and we are supportive of greater referral

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Speaker 2: pathways onto the BDR. The report indicates, you know, over

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Speaker 2: ten thousand people are picked up a year, yet the

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Speaker 2: BDR stubbornly being stuck at about three thousand individuals. There

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Speaker 2: are people that are getting picked up by the patrol

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Speaker 2: of like Warikeia National Police and they're doing a great

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Speaker 2: job taking the sobering up shelters, being turned away at

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Speaker 2: the door because they've had previous violent activities in those

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Speaker 2: sobering up shelters. So yet another government funded service refusing

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Speaker 2: to provide service. They get dump in the emergency department

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Speaker 2: of the hospital instead. And the biggest tragedy about all

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Speaker 2: that is when you look at most of those cohort

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Speaker 2: and their frequent fliers, they're not on the BDR. We

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Speaker 2: just scratch our head, we say, can we just remove

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Speaker 2: the politics from all of this and just get some

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Speaker 2: of these practical outcomes done and get them done yesterday? Yeah,

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Speaker 2: I agree.

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Speaker 1: Hey, what about this two kilometer rule. It's something again

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Speaker 1: that you and I have spoken about before. By the

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Speaker 1: look of things, you know, this review is proposing that

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Speaker 1: the police have do do have sort of you know,

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Speaker 1: further ability to check licenses and that kind of thing.

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Speaker 1: Is this a good move and should it actually come

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Speaker 1: into effect today when the colp introduces that legislation to Parliament.

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Speaker 2: Look, we think it's a good move. There was a

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Speaker 2: change in twenty nineteen. I think the review, without dwelling

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Speaker 2: on it, acknowledges that where they thought it would end

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Speaker 2: up in its implementation on the ground may not have

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Speaker 2: been where it ended up. So you know, team may

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Speaker 2: team be well, you know, we're industry. We don't take

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Speaker 2: a position in any of that, but we do think

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Speaker 2: that police need more than just the tip out power.

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Speaker 2: It mentions another part in the Act where they might

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Speaker 2: not even have the tip out power as clearly as

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Speaker 2: they need, because they're not allowed to forfeiture anything when

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Speaker 2: it's not in offense. So the recommendations from the review,

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Speaker 2: it's tidy all of that up and get them back

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Speaker 2: out there visibly in the parks interacting with these cohorts.

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Speaker 2: And it has been industry's strong view and advice that

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Speaker 2: we haven't seen enough of those interactions happening over the

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Speaker 2: last couple of years. Police shortages and other work with

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Speaker 2: the pandemic, border work and all the rest of it.

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Speaker 2: And it was just this pressure cooker of antisocial behavior

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Speaker 2: that the community unfortunately saw build and build and build.

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Speaker 1: Speaking of that pandemic work, we know that during COVID nineteen,

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Speaker 1: the director did introduce special requirements for the sale of

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Speaker 1: takeaway alcohol, including the requirement that a person have to

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Speaker 1: prove that they have a.

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Speaker 2: Legitimate the rector he is too, I might just intervene.

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Speaker 1: No, that's all right, So you know that they have

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Speaker 1: to have a legitimate residence to consume takeaway alcohol. That

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Speaker 1: measure has obviously voluntarily been applied at per App and

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Speaker 1: Funny Bay, and that's part of their liquor accords. At

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Speaker 1: this stage, it's not recommended that it's a measure to

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Speaker 1: be legislated as a condition for takeaway authorities. What do

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Speaker 1: you think.

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Speaker 2: Look, it's in the Northern Suburbs Liquor accord as well.

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Speaker 2: We're down in Tenant Creek today with the Tenant Creek

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Speaker 2: Liquor Accord. I agree with thought Robin Landley said about

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Speaker 2: there's not a cookie cutter approach. It should be case

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Speaker 2: by casetown by town, suburbs by suburbs. There is concern

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Speaker 2: from industry though that if there's not a clear defined

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Speaker 2: process for us to be rejecting sales above the fact

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Speaker 2: that the person is in tox and above the fact

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Speaker 2: that the screen on the BDR is saying we can

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Speaker 2: sell to them, and that's often visible to the customer,

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Speaker 2: just in the way the shot layout is. Even though

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Speaker 2: this machine says I can churchase, you're telling me I can't.

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Speaker 2: That's when we are seeing an outbreak of a potentially

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Speaker 2: aggressive activity. So we pivot back to the BDR and say,

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Speaker 2: if you can make that better, if you can increase

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Speaker 2: the amount of people that the government and the police

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Speaker 2: are wanting to see on not get alcohol on that list,

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Speaker 2: it helps us de escalate that in our venues. And

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Speaker 2: they made It's not ue, It's not us, it's the computer.

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Speaker 2: The computer says no.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, Alex. You know it's been a really tough ye

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Speaker 1: for hospitality in so many ways, with you know, terrible

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Speaker 1: situations unfolding that you and I have spoken about, with

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Speaker 1: the death of deathne lavity and other really horrible situations,

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Speaker 1: with bottleshop workers being threatened with edged weapons, knives, you know,

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Speaker 1: even all sorts of things. Do you think that you

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Speaker 1: know some of the proposals and some of what is

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Speaker 1: is put forward in this review is going to make

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Speaker 1: your workers safer, we.

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Speaker 2: Hope someone We believe so, and you know, even before

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Speaker 2: that tragic event, but definitely after we've we've had quite

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Speaker 2: strong engagement with the team that has put this body

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Speaker 2: of works together. You know, I think everyone knows there's

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Speaker 2: no quick fix to any of this and it does

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Speaker 2: just need us all in the same room together trying

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Speaker 2: to come up with practical outcomes. So you've got that

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Speaker 2: strong commitment from industry and we're getting good engagement from

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Speaker 2: the government on that regard as well. So we just

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Speaker 2: got to keep shifting away at.

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Speaker 1: A Katie one very quick one electronic licenses, any movement on.

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Speaker 2: This digital drivers licenses for the Northern Territory, Katie. But

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Speaker 2: this is your single biggest win.

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Speaker 1: I'm backing it in what is it ever going to happen?

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Speaker 1: Some of my older listeners do not want it to happen,

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Speaker 1: but I think it's you know, I think that people

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Speaker 1: should have the option.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, it's not an either or so. South Australia's fully

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Speaker 2: rolled it out and you still get a hard copy

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Speaker 2: license as well. New South Wales's fully rolled it out

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Speaker 2: and you still get a hard copy. It's rolled out

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Speaker 2: for one hundred and eighty thousand people in the Townsville

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Speaker 2: area right now, with Cleansland committed to go to full

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Speaker 2: roll out by the end of next year. If you

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Speaker 2: want to keep just using your hard copy license, your

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Speaker 2: life is not changed at all. If you want to

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Speaker 2: only have to carry a smart device around, and you're

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Speaker 2: already doing that when you're buying your coffee, when you're

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Speaker 2: buying your wine or your cartner beer, you know, you're

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Speaker 2: paywaving your phone or your smart watch. Wouldn't it also

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Speaker 2: be great to tap the BDR through that process as well,

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Speaker 2: And I will even look at it, you know where

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Speaker 2: you talk about how do we look at practical changes

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Speaker 2: that could help us all be a bit safer when

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Speaker 2: we walk around the community. Right now, if I get mugged,

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Speaker 2: you take my wallet and you can pay wave you know,

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Speaker 2: one hundred bucks worth of stuff from the local servo

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Speaker 2: if you want to feed that. That is happening unfortunately

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Speaker 2: from time to time. If I'm getting mugged and all

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Speaker 2: I've got is my phone, take it mate, because you

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Speaker 2: can't even get past my thumbprint to get a dollar

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Speaker 2: out of me. Yeah, well that's there is actually a

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Speaker 2: personal safety benefit on disincentivizing why people would be getting

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Speaker 2: approached to the way they are. So there's just a

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Speaker 2: range of things that we think the recommendation in this

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Speaker 2: space that's come in the review is trying a future

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Speaker 2: proof where this might go in the territory and yeah,

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Speaker 2: we think again, the sooner we can get cracking on

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Speaker 2: that and delivering it, the better.

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Speaker 1: Well, Alex Bruce, Hospitality Into CEO, always appreciate your time.

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Speaker 1: Thanks for chatting with me.

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Speaker 2: Cheuk Katie all the best.

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Speaker 1: Thank you,