Labor’s ban laws already apply to licensed cafes and restaurants

In response to the Victorian Liberal Nationals Coalition’s policy released today to ban violent drunks from licensed premises for two years, Deputy Victoria Police Commissioner Kieran Walshe has been reported as saying “police would work with any legislation in place, but it would be difficult to ensure banned thugs did not go into a licensed café or a restaurant for a meal.”

However, Labor’s existing 24-hour banning notice and exclusion order laws already provide for people to be ordered to stay out of any licensed premises, including licensed cafes or restaurants.

These notices or orders can apply to any licensed premises in a designated area, which include the whole of the Melbourne CBD and surrounding precincts, as well as entertainment precincts in places including Ballarat, Bendigo, Geelong, Port Phillip, South Yarra, Knox and Warrnambool.
The Coalition’s bans on violent drunks will be notified to licensed venues through the same mechanisms as currently provided in Labor’s legislation for enforcement of 24-hour bans and exclusion orders, namely through the Director of Liquor Licensing and the police having power to provide information about banned persons to venue operators.

The Coalition’s policy is more enforceable than Labor’s approach because it would apply to licensed premises only, while Labor’s banning notices and exclusion orders can apply to entire designated areas, including unlicensed parts.

It is odd, then, for the Deputy Commissioner to be criticising that aspect of the Coalition’s policy when he hasn’t made the same criticism about Labor’s legislation.

The Coalition’s initiative has been supported by the Police Association of Victoria, which represents frontline police, and which stated today: “The Police Association has today welcomed Coalition Leader, Ted Baillieu’s call to ban violent drunks from entering licensed premises for at least two years upon conviction of an alcohol-related criminal assault.”

Victoria has the lowest number of police officers per capita in Australia and the Coalition, along with most Victorians, wants an increase in frontline police officers and better enforcement.

Deputy Commissioner Walshe’s comments would seem at least in part to reflect the chronic lack of available police under Labor, and with more frontline police and laws that send a clear message that drunken violence will not be tolerated, his work to uphold the law will be made a lot easier.