News : QLD to crack down on liquor at music festivals

FULL-strength beer and bottles of wine would be banned from sale at many major Queensland festivals from next month under new guidelines being drafted to target binge-drinking.  And festival organisers would have to provide at least one crowd controller for every 142 people in attendance.

The new rules – proposed by the State Government’s Office of Liquor, Gaming and Racing – would have wide impact across festivals of all sizes.  But some promoters say they could spell the death knell of some gatherings that are already struggling to remain viable. Under current rules, major outdoor events – like the popular six-day Woodford Folk Festival in December – have been granted a licence allowing liquor to be consumed anywhere onsite.  Other music and cultural festivals have been granted similar licences.

The new guidelines would restrict alcohol consumption to designated bar areas only. Liquor Licensing officials would also have the power to ban festival operators from selling heavy beers, or any other drinks with an alcohol concentration of more than 4 per cent. Wine would have to be sold by the glass rather than by the bottle, under the guidelines.

The new rules have been created to cut down on binge-drinking and drunken behaviour, government sources say. Crowd numbers and whether there has been a history of complaints or incidents at a certain event also would influence the type of licence issued. Festival organisers have slammed the crackdown as excessive, saying it threatened to severely undermine the profits used to keep the state’s music festivals going.

Organisers of the Gold Coast’s Big Day Out, which attracts 55,000 people, said the new rules would simply encourage people to drink more before they arrived. “These new conditions will make it harder for us to keep going,” a spokeswoman said. “Surely a patron attending a concert can decide for themselves … what happened to personal responsibility?”

V Festival promoter Roger Field, of Michael Coppel Presents, said any unilaterally imposed conditions threatened to seriously impact on the feasibility of major music events. “They will also impact on the ability for responsible adults to enjoy events and exercise their own discretion with regard to the consumption of alcohol,” Mr Field said.

A Caloundra Music Festival organiser, who asked not to be named, said the new rules could unfairly hit festivals that promoted a family-friendly image and had no history of disturbances. “I think we are becoming over-regulated,” he said. “People are now going to leave and drink in the pub and drink out of their cars. I expect it will have a big impact on the overall revenue.”

But an Office of Liquor, Gaming and Racing spokeswoman said each application would be assessed on a case-by-case basis, taking into consideration individual factors. She said a decision on restrictions would be made only after consideration of the risks involved in each individual event.

Consultation on the changes closed on Friday.

Source: News.com.au