Woods Megan: Alcohol Reform Bill — In Committee 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Woods Megan: Alcohol Reform Bill — In Committee 
[Sitting date: 30 August 2012. Volume:683;Page:5007. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
Dr MEGAN WOODS (Labour—Wigram) 
: 
 I am very happy to take a call on this the Alcohol Reform Bill. It is fair to say that we are disappointed with this legislation. We are squandering a once-in-a-generation opportunity to really address the issue of alcohol harm in our society. But as other members have mentioned we will have the chance to debate that in coming months. The choice we have today is around the purchase age for alcohol and the three options that have been put in front of us. 
In coming to my decision on how I am going to vote I have considered the evidence because I consider that is what we need to do. We have had colleagues from around the Chamber talking about the evidence just not backing up many of the claims of those who want raise the drinking age back to 20—that is that drinking is a problem confined to that age group of 18 to 20. In fact what we have seen is drinking dropping amongst this cohort in the last 5 years. Many who support raising the drinking age point to neurobiological evidence and talk about the developing adolescent brain but one of the things about this legislation is that the age is just being used as a scapegoat and a smokescreen for the fact that many of the other measures that need to be taken—the tough calls—are not being taken. 
If we were going to have a real debate around the age of purchase or the age of drinking alcohol in New Zealand then we would have had a real debate about it. Instead what we have is just flippant comments about the neurobiological evidence. Actually the neurobiological evidence points to the fact that the adolescent brain develops up to the age of 25; 20 is just some arbitrary line in the sand. If you are going to put it there then you may as well put it at 18. There is no neurobiological evidence to suggest that 20 is any better than 18. It is not better. There is no evidence for that. 
Hon Member 
: Read the report Megan. 
Dr MEGAN WOODS 
: I task the member opposite and I invite him to take a call and point to the neurobiological evidence that shows that 20 is better than 18. He cannot because it does not exist. 
Then we have the other option of the split age. I say that if you think the drinking age matters then you need to choose to vote either 18 or 20. I think that we need to make a call on this and I will be voting to keep the drinking age at 18 because I do not think that raising it back to 20 is going to achieve anything in addressing alcohol harm in this country. The royal commission when it initially made its recommendations did look at a split age but it abandoned this by the time the final report came out and it abandoned it for a very good reason. That very good reason is because it is a political compromise not something that works anywhere else to actually address the issue of reducing alcohol harm in this country. Raising the age back to 20 or splitting the drinking age between 18 and 20 will do nothing to reduce alcohol harm in New Zealand. All it is doing is putting the onus for this problem back on young people and as previous speakers have said making scapegoats of them. 
We need to do better than this in this Parliament. We have an opportunity to really address this issue and we are squandering it. We need to do better for our country and we need to do better for our young people than making scapegoats of them. This is all it is doing; it is very convenient to raise the drinking age to 20 and think you have solved the problem. 
Mike Sabin 
: Purchase age. 
Dr MEGAN WOODS 
: But the reality is that nothing will change. Raising the age at which people can purchase or drink alcohol from 18 to 20 will not address the problems we have in this country. I urge members from all round the House to consider the evidence when they are making their vote. I have looked at the evidence and I will be voting to keep it 18. Thank you.