Carnarvon booze crackdown leads to drop in crime as WA minister suggests successful policy could stay

Crime and antisocial behaviour in Carnarvon have plunged since strict takeaway liquor restrictions were imposed, and while minor changes to the rules could be on the cards, there’s a strong possibility the policy could remain in place for a long time. WA’s director of liquor licensing Lanie Chopping announced the tough measures in May in response to a shocking booze-fuelled crime wave including street brawls, burglaries and family and domestic violence assaults that prompted some residents to move away. Some locals were too scared to leave their homes as out-of-control youths roamed the streets, while vital hospital services were dominated by injuries and illnesses caused by the demon drink. The final straw appeared to be a fracas involving about 100 people during which a nine-year-old boy suffered serious head injuries, while an accord — a voluntary agreement between liquor stores, pubs, police and other authorities - was deemed dysfunctional. Ms Chopping responded by banning takeaway sales on Sunday and Monday, and limiting it to between midday and 7pm on other days - drawing howls of complaint from some merchants claiming they would lose buckets of income. But none of them have shut up shop — unsurprising given data indicated adult alcohol consumption in Carnarvon had been 2.4 times the overall WA rate — the streets are no longer strewn with broken glass and the emergency department has seen a major drop in liquor-related harm. The West Australian accompanied Racing and Gaming Minister Reece Whitby on a visit to the coastal Gascoyne town this week as he checked progress six months later — the halfway point to a review by Ms Chopping. The latest available police figures show all crimes in Carnarvon fell from 81 in May to 50 in September, down 38.3 per cent. Mr Whitby described the restrictions as a “circuit breaker”. “Police say their workload has come down a lot so they can be more proactive, so it’s not just running after strife outside the pub,” he said. “The evidence is overwhelming that it’s had a positive impact.” Shire of Carnarvon president Eddie Smith — who copped flak from some in the local booze biz for his advocacy for urgent intervention — is delighted that the immediately visible positive impacts of the restrictions had endured — at a scale that surpassed his expectations. Before they came in, he was “getting daily complaints about the behaviour” in certain areas, blaming a small but continuously difficult cohort. Locals were now telling him the restrictions had transformed their street “from a nightmare” where they couldn’t get a full night’s sleep. “The majority of the community were initially not very happy about it (the restrictions) because Carnarvon hates change, but when people realised the benefits, which came quite quickly, there was a sentiment that this was the right thing to do,” Mr Smith said. “There’s been a big improvement — it’s much quieter, it’s noticeable. “I went to the ED on Saturday night at 8pm and I got straight in. It wasn’t an absolute sh**fight. “It has made a significant change. “The majority of the community are telling me they’re now used to it.” Tracey Tonga, the chair of prescribed body corporate Yinggarda, said Carnarvon had “mellowed right out”. “It has settled right down, you don’t see a lot of drunks hanging around everywhere, except in (certain areas). “You can’t stop the crime — it always happens everywhere — but there’s not as much fighting. “Sunday, Mondays are quieter days.” Tourism has eased slightly in Carnarvon in recent months, but Mr Smith and Gascoyne Development Commission chief executive Timothy Bray aren’t convinced the restrictions have anything to do with that given they don’t apply to visitors. “And the other issue is, what makes you think tourists want to see people fighting in parks and throwing an ugly performance around the supermarket?” Mr Bray said. The Minister indicated the policy wasn’t likely to be lifted soon after the 12-month review. “I think there’d be a real disappointment if it got all rolled back,” Mr Whitby said. “There’s some ability to tinker at the edges and listen to some community input. “But I can’t think of an action in relation to a town that was being really impacted by social issues related to alcohol where there’s been such a dramatic turnaround.” Mr Smith said the policy needed “tweaking”, particularly a $15 minimum price on wine, which was “penalising” older, well-behaved people on a budget who “buy $8-12 bottles of wine and it takes them four days to drink it”. The shire president — who was recently re-elected with an even higher vote, suggesting most locals back his pro-restrictions stance — also suggested daily volume limits were liberal. They include each customer being allowed — each day — one carton or 11.25 litres of beer with an alcohol content up to 6 per cent, two bottles or a 1.5-litre cask of wine, or 1 litre of spirits. In the meantime, a currently voluntary banned drinkers register scheme operating in Carnarvon, the Kimberley, Pilbara, Goldfields and Gascoyne Junction will become mandatory for all licensees on December 14, requiring them to scan every customer’s ID against the list and refuse service if there is a match. From that same day, police will gain the power to issue anyone they are charging with an alcohol-related offence - or who has already notched up two alcohol-related infringements in the same category in the preceding two years - with a banned drinker order. They would stay on the register for three months for their first offence, with the duration doubling with each subsequent booze-related crime. Anyone caught supplying alcohol to a banned drinker can also be put on the list or be fined up to $10,000. Magistrates will also be able to issue banned drinker orders and health professionals will be able to refer patients they are concerned about to police, who will decide whether to add them to the register. Self-aware problem drinkers will be able to nominate themselves. There are now just eight people on the register because it is currently based around barring notices and prohibition orders for people who have been drunkenly violent on licensed premises, but the new order doesn’t have to be on licensed premises and covers any alcohol-related offence. Bottle shops needed to be more strict because people were using other people’s IDs to buy booze, Ms Tonga added.