EPIDEMIC AND LIQUOR

New Zealand Herald, Volume LV, Issue 17040, 23 December 1918, Page 8

EPIDEMIC AND LIQUOR

INVALID PROHIBITION.

NO APPROVAL BY MINISTER. The special order issued by the public health officer during the epidemic period, ordering the closing of hotels, was the basis of charges of selling liquor, when hotels were required to be closed, pre _ forred against A. J. Monro, licensee of the New felktultr Hotel, and Helen .Monro, before Mr. V- V. I'raW. i>-M-> at the Wellington Magistrate's Court on Friday. Inspector Mareaek said a.special Gazette was pushed prohibiting W sale of liquor in Wellington, and otic * , were published in the newspapers d\ mo Health Department ordering the closing , of all hotels and prohibiting the sale 01 . liquor. The police warned the various licensees that the sale of liquor to an) one was absolutely forbidden. , Sergeant McKelvie stated that ho visjiea the New gealander Hotel on No™ei 25, and personally warned ttie licensee that he was not to sell liquor to anyone. He drew defendants notice to toe lact that this order had been advertised in the press. . ', Mr. Levi: Did you mention boarders, Witness : Boarders were not menttonM -I said lie was not to sell dimK to W) • one. , , .Sergeant Martin said be vwiUrt tne hotel on November 30, and found there a number of men with glasses Of liquor before them. They were all boulders of the hotel. Mr. P. Levi submitted that the pro.,ecuton. had failed to prove that the >MV>B°> liquor had been prohibited, l.ifi Uozetie required the approval ot the Minister for Public Health, before any special powers could become OpOT.i-ti.VO, but there wa« 110 evidence of tho Minister's approval 01 the notices published by the district health officer, The consent of the .Minister was absolutely necessary. Futhcr, he submitted that the special order wa? not meant to apply to hoarders—in any case boarders were not specified in tho order, These men were dunking in their own (homos— was nothing to prohibit them. The only evidence of prohibition was an advertisement in the newspapers. He next referred to the licencing Act, which authorised the licensee of an hotel to serve liquor at any time to any person who was (i lodger or who was staying at the hotel. He submitted that the special order issued by the Health Department could not, affect the powers conferred on the licensee regarding boarders under section 191 of the Licensing Act. The way in which prohibition was effected by this advertisement was too vague—tlwre was no time stated—it did not oven state "during tho epidemio." Mr. Frazer remarked that the police did not suggest that the licensee was serving anyone but boarders. The regulations purported to prohibit the sale of alcoholic liquors. Ho considered that this covered everyone—no matter whether casual or lodger. Section 14 of the Public Health Act authorised the health officer to advertise in newspapers any measures considered necessarj to check the spread of infectious disease. It was possible that the Department did not fully understand the provisions of the special order. The proclamation issued by the Governor-General on November 21 conferred on district health officers, with the approval of the Minister for Public Health, tho power to prohibit the sale of liquor, The advertisement published on Novoinber 22 did not state that the approval of the Minister had been given, and no other proof had been (submitted to the Court to show that 6iich approval was ever given. The informations would be dismissed.