Have your say: Liquor let-down

An Onerahi resident is angry that despite protests, another liquor store has opened in the township.

No wonder the people of Onerahi feel badly let down by the current liquor licensing system, when nearly all of us opposed the granting of another bottle store licence and we still get landed with one.

Do we live in a democracy, or do we not ?

I was at the original hearing, and it was obvious then that the committee were hell-bent on having the application approved.

One really has to wonder why Cr John Williamson - chairman of the local licensing
committee - would be so blatantly against the best interests of the Onerahi community.

When the [Northland] District Health Board, the Community Association, the Resource Centre Trust, the local police and just about everyone else are against having another liquor outlet here, why on earth would it be granted ?

The whole process is so abundantly shonky I really wonder how the heavily ingrained pro-alcohol ethos that New Zealand has had for many years managed to creep into a suburb like Onerahi when virtually the whole community is against it.

As a professional counsellor and a voluntary social worker I see the argument that another outlet won't increase the alcohol harm in the Onerahi community as totally facile.

And how do our own local councillors, Brian McLachlan and Sue Glen feel?

Are they for or against the new outlet?

Now the council has produced a draft Local Alcohol Policy which, among other things, will ban the establishment of bottle stores for the next six years.

Submissions on the draft policy close on Friday.

Please, everyone, if you feel strongly about this, get a copy of the draft policy and tell the council what you think of it.

John Ross
Onerahi

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