The federal government will next week consider the reintroduction of alcohol bans in the Northern Territory.
Alcohol sales will be subject to immediate curbs across the Northern Territory in a step towards more sweeping bans within a week, after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese flew to Alice Springs to respond to a surge in violence ravaging Indigenous communities.
On top of an existing restriction on Sunday alcohol sales, bottle shops will be banned from selling take-away alcohol on Mondays and Tuesdays, while trading hours for takeaways would be reduced on the remaining days, and transactions would be limited to one per person, per day.Fyles said the government could enforce the changes immediately.
Burney said the measures “that have been announced today are important, and the fact that we have an ongoing process for dealing with … incredibly complex issues in central Australia should be commended”. The Howard government enacted widespread alcohol bans as part of its Northern Territory intervention in 2007. These rules were replaced by Labor’s 2012 Stronger Futures laws, which maintained bans and increased penalties.
Local statistics show property damage rose 60 per cent in the year to November 2022, assault rose by 43 per cent, domestic violence-related assault rose by 53 per cent, and commercial break-ins by 55 per cent. However, Fyles accused Dutton of playing politics in recent weeks “without even visiting the Northern Territory” and letting the Stronger Futures legislation lapse while he was in cabinet under the previous Coalition government.
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