Adams Paul: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Adams Paul: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:606;Page:3477] 
5.  
PAUL ADAMS (United Future) 
 to the  
Minister of Justice 
: Is he satisfied that enough is being done to curb the kind of teenage drinking that appeared to be a significant factor in the tragic events at Whangarei over the weekend? 
Hon PHIL GOFF (Minister of Justice) 
: 
 Final conclusions as to what led to the tragic death of a teenage girl and the injury of many others in Whangarei over the weekend must of course await the outcome of police inquiries and the judicial process that will follow that. Drug and alcohol use may have been a significant factor in what occurred but speculation at this point in advance of having any informed reports is not particularly productive.  
Paul Adams 
: Is the Minister concerned at the prevalence of pocket-money alcohol which is sold in 1.125 litre bottles for about $10 and which is 23 percent alcohol and therefore just avoids being taxed at the rate of spirits; if so will he commit to changing the excise duty on those drinks to make them less attractive to price-sensitive young people? 
Hon PHIL GOFF 
: There is no doubt at all that the lower excise rates on alcohol with the lower content just below the benchmark rate does make that alcohol cheaper more affordable and to a greater extent used by young people who do not have a lot of money. I am sure the Minister of Finance will embrace the suggestion of the United Future party with open arms that we should increase the excise duty. In fact my colleague the Associate Minister of Health foreshadowed the need to examine that before Christmas. 
Russell Fairbrother 
: What is being done to address concerns about alcohol and drug abuse which causes harm to teenagers and others? 
Hon PHIL GOFF 
: A wide range of projects to address alcohol and drug abuse by teenagers is being undertaken at the present time. Those include cracking down on the supply of alcohol to under-age drinkers through the police’s controlled purchase operations increasing the power and resources of the police to clamp down on methamphetamines and educative programmes to reduce demand. Those programmes are being overseen by a ministerial action group which is designed to ensure that there is cooperation and coordination between a range of ministries and agencies with responsibilities in this area. 
Richard Worth 
: Is he concerned that the Alcohol Advisory Council’s survey released last year showed that 67 percent of the parents of minors aged between 14 and 17 knew their children were drinking and that 45 percent supplied their children with alcohol; if so what Government initiatives are targeted to curb those figures? 
Hon PHIL GOFF 
: I am concerned not simply that parents are providing alcohol—I think alcohol in moderate amounts provided by a parent to a child is perfectly acceptable—but that some parents have no idea of what is advisable or sensible with reports of young children who went on to commit serious criminal offences having been provided literally with litres of spirits by their parents or guardians. To deal with that problem we have endorsed supported and promoted the “Think Before You Supply” campaign. Indeed just before Christmas I sent out a letter to every safer community council in the country drawing attention to what the Alcohol Advisory Council had available and what it could support those councils with in order to get the message home that if one provides one’s teenagers with large amounts of alcohol one is part of the problem. 
Peter Brown 
: Noting those answers would the Minister consider reviewing the 18 years of age drinking age and perhaps adopting the bill of my colleague Ron Mark that addresses that issue; if not why not? 
Hon PHIL GOFF 
: As the member who has been in the House for a number of terms knows well any decision on issues such as the legal age for the supply of alcohol is a decision for Parliament as a whole on the so-called conscience vote not a decision for the Government. I have however taken the initiative of on a 6-monthly basis monitoring any impact that the lowering of the drinking age to 18 may have had and any negative social consequences of it. To date—and the figures are still relatively fresh and one needs to see the trend—those figures point to movement in both directions: a worsening in some areas but not necessarily because of the lowering of the age and an improvement in some areas such as alcohol-related fatalities caused by drink-driving. 
Nandor Tanczos 
: Does the Minister find it strange to be questioned about teenage drinking by a member of a party that is led by a man who has consistently voted and spoken against age and other controls on alcohol and tobacco who refuses to allow this House to consider age controls on cannabis yet who claims to be family-friendly and sensible?  
Hon PHIL GOFF 
: Rather than commenting on an individual perhaps I can just send the general message that too often we are ready to blame kids for what they do when they draw their social role models from adults. Every member of this House needs to think about that. 
Paul Adams 
: In the light of the findings of the Alcohol Advisory Council of New Zealand’s survey last year which showed 83 percent of 14 to 17-year-olds sourced their alcohol from parents and friends when will programmes like Taranaki’s under-18s drink campaign “Think Before You Buy Under 18s Drink” be introduced to other communities? 
Hon PHIL GOFF 
: I actually addressed that question several supplementary questions back. We have endorsed the “Think Before You Buy Under 18s Drink” campaign and promoted it across the country. We have offered to provide resources to any area or any council that wants to undertake that campaign. I would urge the safer community councils to participate in what has proved to be quite effective in making parents think about the consequences of their actions with regard to supplying large amounts of liquor to under-age drinkers.