Dan Murphy’s Darwin licensing application plans go before Liquor Commission

EFFORTS by liquor giant Dan Murphy’s to open a warehouse-style store near Darwin Airport have entered their most complex stage with the outlet’s licensing application now before the Liquor Commission

Efforts by liquor giant Dan Murphy’s to open a warehouse-style store near Darwin Airport have now entered their most complex stage

EFFORTS by liquor giant Dan Murphy’s to open a warehouse-style store near Darwin Airport entered their most complex stage on Friday when the outlet’s licensing application landed with the Liquor Commission.

The company behind Darwin Murphy’s, Endeavour Drinks, which is a subsidiary of the Woolworths Group and which also owns BWS outlets, is applying to transfer its BWS Stuart Park licence to a Dan Murphy’s in Eaton, on a vacant block of land.

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Endeavour Drinks general manager Shane Tremble told the ABC he expected the application would take “some time” and would be the most complex application dealt with by the newly-formed Liquor Commission.

Few details of the company’s proposal have been made public, but Darwin Council has been told the proposed larger outlet will operate shorter hours than the BWS outlet.

An NT News poll found 84 per cent of respondents supported the Dan Murphy’s development, although a core group largely composed of Greens and Labor-aligned figures and health campaigners have opposed it.

The application is expected to turn on the public interest test, with opponents arguing Dan Murphy’s business model of selling alcohol cheaper than suburban bottle shops could result in increased social harm.

Dan Murphy’s is expected to rely on its shorter opening hours, plans for rigorous security and strong track record of complying with liquor licensing regimes interstate.

It is also expected to argue that the Gunner Government’s controversial alcohol floor price would prevent the sale of cheap grog most often associated with alcohol-related harm, and that its business model is more focused on offering lower prices for premium products.

The Association of Alcohol and Other Drug Agencies Northern Territory, which has published its objection to the development, has argued the new development is within walking distance of Bagot, Minmarama Park and Kulaluk communities, which it says are “already affected by harm caused by alcohol”.

The application will be determined at a public hearing before the Commission, at a date to be set.

Dan Murphy’s first flagged opening a Darwin outlet in 2015 and its efforts have been most significantly stonewalled by the Gunner Government, which used its legislative powers to kill off a 2017 Federal Court case that was set to probe the conduct of Chief Minister Michael Gunner and Labor Party advisers.

The company alleged they took part in a secret, improper backroom deal to keep the outlet from setting up in the Northern Territory.