LOCAL OPTION

Evening Post, Volume CXXXIX, Issue 91, 18 April 1945, Page 7

LOCAL OPTION

H®W IT OPERATES

Vil£Ws«i{ AUG AtiAMS?-

T&e\ views trf what he \-termed a cross-section of the electors, of 1 Wellington, East. were . subrnft'tea ;fo 'the Royal ■•Cbimmls'sltfh oh 'Licencingl'- yester<3ay by M*. -Andrew MorriSo Tn, land agent :a"hd . financial -broker, : of Lyall Bay. .."_'."- Certain. Witnesses, he said, had expressed the view to the 'Com'misskm that all no-licence areas should ,be abojisKed, that th'efe should W ofte generalrlaw ....f6rv.tb.G- "whole , country, that redundant licences xin certain areas wShoxM-be- transferred to atfter districts,; -and r that - existing . -licences should be redistributed throughout the Dominion on a population basis.

The electors in his district, said Mr. Morrison, were deeply concerned that such suggestions should be made. It would, he said, be wholly undemocratic to grant licences in Wellington East, where the electors had successfully declared against having licences in their midst. What applied to Wellington East should apply to all residential areas. The people should have the right of deciding whether or not hotels should be allowed in their midst. No licences should be transferred to a "dry" area, and no additional licences should be granted in "wet" areas without a referendum of the residents concerned. The privilege of voting on local option should be immediately reinstated in all electorates. Replying to Mr. E. C. N. Robinson (a member of the Commission), the witness said h& was not a member of the New' Zealand Alliance, but was a teetotaller. LIQUOR IN MASTERTON. Evidence was also given by the Mayor of Eketahuna (Mr. Oliver Walton), who made two submissions: (1) That local no-licence, as it at present existed, was totally unsatisfactory, served no useful purpose, and provided the opportunity of abuses; and (2) that the present method of denning licensing areas in relation to electoral areas was wrong in principle, and, in certain cases, worked unreasonably. The quantities of liquor taken into the no-licence district of Masterton in a legal manner during the year ended March.3l, 1945, said the witness, were: beer, 46,656 gallons; stout, 3377 galJons; whisky, 140 gallons; brandy, 29 gallons; gin, 37 gallons; rum, nine gallons; and wine, 1676 gallons. But he believed that not more than 40 per cent., had been correctly signed for and recorded in that electorate.. He estimated the average consumption of liquor at 47 pints a head of population, or 70 pints a head of electors. The average consumption a head of population in the district was thus not far short of the average total Dominion consumption a head of 82 pints of beer. NON-OBSERVANCE OF LAW. The witness alluded to the trouble caused by "keg parties," when beer was brought into the area, and the liquor, once it had been broached, had to be consumed within a matter of hours. General concern was felt by all thinking citizens at the way the law was ignored or disobeyed, but local nolicence was a prolific cause of this lack of observance. "The attitude of the average man is that his friend, residing only a few miles away, can take home .any liquor he wishes without any restrictions whatsoever, and he does not see why he should not do the same thing."

"Is it not a fact that the majority of motorists shun Eketahuna?" asked Mr H. F. O'Leary, K.C. (for the National Council of the Licensed Trade).

"They seem very anxious* to get to Carterton. as quickly as possible," the witness replied, "and you probably know why." (Laughter.) You would say that your town has definitely deteriorated since the advent of no-licence?— Yes.

In reply to the Rev. J. T. Macky (a member of the Commission), the witness said he was not conversant with the quantity of liquor that entered the town of Masterton, but was speaking, more particularly of his own end of the electorate. He did not think that sly-grog selling was particularly prevalent.

The next witness, Mr. Donald Graham, clerk, of Wellington, said he washed to give evidence on behalf of the man in the street," "I would very much like to go* and have a drink quietly in the evening," he said instead of rushing in and having three or four handles as soon as I have finished work." He suggested that the hotels should open from 9 a.m. until z p.m., then close until 5 p.m., and reopen until 9 p.m. The extension of hours would not in his opinion increase drinking.