HOTEL LICENCES IN CHATHAMS

Press, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 25310, 9 October 1947, Page 8

HOTEL LICENCES IN CHATHAMS

MR MCCOMBS SUPPORTS REDUCTION IFrom Our Parliamentary Reporter.) WELLINGTON, October 8. The sale of liquor in the Chatham Islands was discussed by Mr T. H. McCombs (Government, Lyttelton) in the House of Representatives to-day. Mr McCombs said the island, with a total population of 540, including children, had two hotels within about 100 yards of each other, and both were owned by the same man. Mr McCombs said he thought it could be held excessive that there should be the two hotels for so small a population and in his opinion the number of licences should be reduced to one. Stores should be sold in a different building altogether. One comment on drinking in the Chatham Islands in the commission’s report was based on a false premise. It made the assumption that because there were empty beer bottles • to be seen in many places there was a considerable amount of drinking. That assumption ignored the fact that beer bottles were never returned from the Chathams because it was not economic to ship them. If all the beer bottles bought in Tauranga, for instance, in the last 50 years were left lying Pound there would probably be a big accumulation, too.

Speaking of the licensing trade generally, Mr McCombs said that most of the present abuses came from the profit-motive. He would be in favour of a ballot in each hotel district to determine whether all hotels should be ru j n A un<^er a trust licensing system. ‘As everyone knows I would prefer to see prohibition carried, but the people have decided against that,” Mr McCombs said.