The current Act, the Liquor Control Act 1988 was written to supersede the Liquor Act 1970, and has been in force since 9 December 1988, and has therefore been in operation in various forms for some 35+ years. The Act contains large sections of legislation which was identical or very similar to the provisions of the 1970 Act which it replaced.

Over the years, there have been numerous calls for reform, with critics of the current Act citing it as outdated and ineffectual in terms of progressing applications through to determination in a timely and cost effective manner. Similarly, the licence categories have been criticised as being too narrow and severely misaligned with current trading trends. It became apparent to all in the industry that reform was much needed and overdue.

In November 2022, the Department of Racing Gaming and Liquor, as part of the Department of Local Government, Sports and Cultural Industries, released a public consultation paper entitled The Next Chapter of WA’s Liquor Laws. With the paper, a survey for public feedback was also released, seeking stakeholder input.

The Licensing Authority received over 200 responses. From those responses, two separate options were developed, and working stakeholder focus groups were approached for comment. The two options, broadly speaking, were ‘Retain Most Categories with Minor Adjustments’ and ‘New Regime of Four Licence Categories’.

RGL met with the stakeholder groups to seek and provide feedback regarding the two options being progressed. That process remains ongoing up to the time of publication of this article.

There is no set timeline for a decision on the potential reforms, or even whether they will even occur. It remains to be seen whether the Licensing Authority will acknowledge the pressing need for reform to ensure our constantly changing liquor industry remains current, workable and dynamic.

With over 40 years combined experience in the liquor licensing practice area, we are dedicated to ensuring we remain at the forefront of industry change. We and will continue to follow the reform as it progresses, which we hope will result in a streamlined process for Licensees and industry stakeholders.