The Northern Cape High Court has upended the provincial government’s plans to extend liquor trading hours, upholding a challenge brought by the nonprofit DG Murray Trust.
The trust is campaigning against moves by provinces and municipalities to extend the hours during which alcohol can be sold, arguing that increasing the availability of liquor will worsen South Africa’s high rates of binge drinking and associated violence.
While just less than a third of South Africans over the age of 15 consume alcohol, almost 60% of those that do are binge drinkers, according to the World Health Organisation.
The trust previously stopped the Kannaland municipality in the Western Cape from extending its liquor trading hours and is litigating against similar plans by the North West provincial government.
“We have an extremely high prevalence of heavy drinking in South Africa, which plays out in foetal alcohol syndrome rates that are 10 times higher than the rest of the world. It’s a major factor in high homicide rates, gender-based violence and other forms of injury, and if we are serious about tackling violence in South Africa, we have to tackle the single biggest aggravator,” said executive director David Harrison.
The trust seeks to identify and promote strategies that have been shown to be effective in combating heavy drinking, Harrison said. As there is an association between later opening hours and violence, the trust is pushing back against provinces and municipalities that extended their liquor trading hours, he added.
Public consultation
In a judgment handed down last week, acting judge president Mmathebe Phatshoane overturned the 2024 Northern Cape Gambling and Liquor Act on procedural grounds, ruling that the legislation is unconstitutional and invalid because the provincial government failed to conduct a proper public consultation process.
The constitution requires parliament and provincial legislatures to involve the public in developing or amending laws and provide an opportunity for stakeholders to make written submissions and participate in public hearings.
The judge highlighted several shortcomings in the provincial legislature’s public participation process on the draft bill proposing the extended trading hours.
These include that the invitation to comment was not advertised but only emailed to a select group of stakeholders; that the public was given only six days to prepare for public hearings on the bill; and that the proceedings were conducted in English, while the dominant language spoken by the local community is Afrikaans.
“It’s absolutely critical that communities fully understand and appreciate both the economic benefits and the potential harms of extending liquor trading hours in their community,” said Harrison.
The 2024 Northern Cape Gambling and Liquor Act makes it easier to buy alcohol later at night, allowing bars, taverns and other venues licensed for on-site consumption to sell alcohol until 6am, six days a week and until midnight on Sunday.
The previous iteration of the act allowed on-site consumption until 2am, Monday to Sunday. The 2024 act also extended trading hours for off-site consumption, allowing bottle stores, grocers and sorghum beer traders to sell liquor from 8am to 8pm from Monday to Saturday and on public holidays. Previously off-site sales were not permitted after 5pm on Saturdays and public holidays.
The judge did not, however, uphold the trust’s argument that the Northern Cape provincial legislature’s extension of liquor trading hours violated a series of its constitutional obligations, including its duty to protect children from maltreatment, neglect and abuse.
“That is an important signal for public health advocates. While there is growing evidence that alcohol‑related harms to children are profound and widespread, this judgment shows that a child‑rights‑based argument has not yet been developed to the point where it is likely, on its own, to decisively shape alcohol policy or liquor‑outlet regulation in court,” said Charles Parry, chief specialist scientist at the Medical Research Council’s mental, alcohol, substance use & tobacco research unit.
Naledi Gaosekwe, spokesperson for Northern Cape premier Zamani Saul, said: “We are currently studying the judgment in detail and engaging with our state law adviser to fully understand its implications. Once this process is concluded, we will consider and determine the appropriate options going forward.”
• This article has been updated with comment from the premier’s spokesperson.
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