A review of Bendigo’s outdated liquor accord is underway, with a separate agreement for late night venues – akin to what is practiced in Melbourne – being considered.
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The 10-year-old voluntary accord currently has 117 signatories, out of 406 licensed venues across Bendigo, which includes sporting clubs, packaged alcohol outlets and pubs.
Police will on Tuesday meet with council staff and the state’s liquor and gambling regulator to discuss a new accord, and whether a separate late-night venue agreement is appropriate.
Inspector Shane Brundell described a cultural shift in younger generations’ drinking behaviour, which he believed was “playing out in licensed venues” across Bendigo.
The incidents of alcohol-related violence had not shifted dramatically in the 10 years since the accord was introduced, but the type and volume of substances consumed had, and the accord needed to reflect that, Inspector Brundell said.
Publican Andrew Lethlean, who was involved in formulating the current accord, said the average spend at his three Bendigo venues was $20, which he attributed to increased drug consumption.
“Sometimes you don’t know whether they (patrons) have been drinking, mixing drugs and alcohol or mixing alcohol with over-the-counter drugs,” he said.
“You’ve got to be a genius to figure out why people behave the way they do.
“They’ve got to be doing the damage somewhere else, and we’re the ones responsible for them all.”
The current accord, which has been through phases of banning promotional deals that encouraged excessive drinking and banning high-alcohol shots at certain venues, has been left idle for a couple of years, Mr Lethlean said.
A mixture of employment changes within council and the police, in addition to a council election last year, meant the four-way partnership had waned somewhat recently, he said.
“We need to resurrect it again,” he said.
The accord has no specifications for late night venues, however Mr Lethlean said that particular group of owners had previously met quite regularly to discuss issues specific to them, like lockouts, video surveillance and security.
A 2am lockout has however been in place for CBD venues since 2007.
“We don’t want issues in the streets or the venues. We want to make staff and patrons safe, that’s the main priority,” said Mr Lethlean, adding the accord was about building relationships between community leaders, patrons, and ultimately the public.
The state’s liquor and gambling regulator will open two offices in regional Victoria from April next year in an effort to crack down on country pubs and clubs not obeying their liquor licences.
The state government announced $11.3 million for the plan recently, which will see up to six inspectors based in regional Victoria to work with local councils, police and community health services.