May 23, 2013
The State Government has passed new laws to make it easier for community groups to hold events without needing to obtain liquor permits.
Attorney-General Jarrod Bleijie said the Liquor and Gaming (Red Tape Reduction) and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2013 made more than 20 changes to legislation to reduce liquor and gaming red tape.
“These are common sense amendments,” Mr Bleijie said.
“Fundraisers like trivia nights and charity golf days organised by non-profit groups like P&Cs or Rotary will be able to serve a drink without needing a Community Liquor Permit from July 1, 2013.
“Many of the previous regulations and requirements were unnecessary and only created extra hassles for groups planning events.
“This legislation streamlines the licence application process for low-risk venues such as restaurants and cafes.”
The amendments will also:
- Scrap expensive risk-assessed management plans and community impact statements for low-risk venues that apply for liquor licences, as long as they meet certain criteria
- Save businesses from laborious application forms and unnecessary costs that run into the thousands
- Bring regulations affecting nursing homes and hospitals into line with retirement villages by allowing the sale of small amounts of alcohol to patients and visitors without requiring a licence
“We trust Queenslanders to do the right thing and if they don’t, laws are in place to penalise them and remove the exemption,” Mr Bleijie said.
“This is not a nanny state and these laws get government off the backs of community groups and businesses.”
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Member for Nanango Deb Frecklington has supported the changes.
“These common sense amendments mean community groups in our region will soon not have the the hassle of filling out huge forms and paying fees just to be able to serve alcohol at their events,” Mrs Frecklington said.
“In my speech to Parliament to support these changes, I mentioned several types of fundraising and not-for-profit groups which would benefit such as the Yarraman Bowls Club’s annual Rosalie Fours, the Kumbia Brain Drain run by the Kumbia State School, or the South Burnett Young Leaders Kingaroy fundraising events,” she said.
“It is intended that our groups will no longer need to fork out $57 and fill out more paperwork. And the reason we know we can trust our community groups is that only nine applications, of the 6774 permits issued in 2012, were rejected.”
- For more information visit www.olgr.qld.gov.au/aboutUs/ourLawsAndPolicies/
