Giving evidence in the Regent Night’n Day liquor licence renewal application, University of Otago director of student services Karyn Thomson said she was talking "serious harm", where students had become so drunk they needed medical help and had to be admitted to hospital.
So far this year, there had been 327 "extreme" referrals, compared with 315 for all of 2016. Another 41 had been referred by Campus Watch to the proctor then to Student Health, if there was a problem. For the whole of last year there were 40. Also to the end of June, another 159 had been referred to the university after being taken to the emergency department, usually by St John. For all of last year there were 217 such cases.
The university’s concerns about alcohol-related harm and the "unacceptable density" of liquor outlets in North Dunedin was
raised earlier by university vice-chancellor Harlene Hayne with the committee.
She recognised the university had no grounds, under the current legislation, for objection to Regent Night’n Day’s licence renewal application, but she urged the committee to "do all in its power" to address the density and opening hours of liquor outlets in or near the student zone in North Dunedin. The committee yesterday agreed to hear the university’s evidence as part of district licensing inspector Tony Mole’s case against the licence renewal.
In the absence of Prof Hayne, Ms Thomson was called as a witness. She said the university was responsible for the interests and education of more than 17,000 students living mainly in the North Dunedin area, and for the direct pastoral care of another 3000 students in university colleges. There was no doubt drinking behaviour was a real issue.
The university’s concern was based on its own experience, as well as international research, Ms Thomson said. That data showed the availability of liquor and its price had a significant impact on the health, safety and well-being of students.
Asked by Mr Mole whether harm could be decreased by reducing the availability of alcohol, Ms Thomson said research showed students generally started out an evening by having a budget for alcohol. But once they started drinking and became inebriated, they ended up spending more money on alcohol than originally intended.
With the proliferation of alcohol outlets, the opening hours and the cheap options, availability had increased greatly, Ms Thomson said.
Asked by committee member Andrew Noone whether supermarkets were "a bigger problem" than Regent Night’n Day, Ms Thomson said "to some extent" that was a relevant question, "but we have to address the issue where we can".
"Some of the issues from Regent Night’n Day may not be the same as for supermarkets, but we feel we have a responsibility to our students and their welfare," Ms Thomson said.
Committee chairman Colin Weatherall said the committee was "very keen to have a wider understanding" of the issue and asked if the relevant research could be made available to it. Under further questioning, Ms Thomson agreed that whatever else was available in the shop, the university’s real concern was alcohol availability. Price did not come into it, as students would begin their evening with a budget but, once inebriated, would buy more alcohol - "it doesn’t matter where".
She was aware students drank more than the general public, Ms Thomson told medical officer of health Dr Keith Reid. And she agreed it was the alcohol bought later in the evening which was likely to result in harmful behaviour.
"So the problem with Night and Day is they’re open later in the evening than other outlets?" Dr Reid asked.
To Katie Lane, counsel for the applicant, Ms Thomson said she was not suggesting the store would sell alcohol to intoxicated people.
As students tended to operate in "packs" there would always be someone able to buy alcohol for them. She could not comment on whether a policy to check the identify of every person coming in would be a protective measure, but she agreed students would always "go for the cheaper option" if it was available.
Apart from the university’s concerns, another issue raised in opposition to the licence renewal was the status of the store, whether it was a grocery store and thus entitled to sell alcohol, or a convenience store, as listed on the company’s website for its stores nationwide. Mr Mole and Dr Reid also argued the applicant had failed to supply the necessary information to establish its eligibility for a licence, so its application could not succeed. The committee reserved its decision.
- Kay Sinclair
