Bizarre rationale behind Dan Murphy’s rejection

A GIANT Dan Murphy’s booze barn is as similar to a neighbourhood bottleshop as a goldfish is to a pet dog, according to the man responsible for upholding the Darwin Dan Murphy’s ban

Drinking Territorians including mega bottlo enthusiast Ryan Shaw just want a Dan Murphy’s in Darwin. Picture: Glenn Campbell

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A GIANT Dan Murphy’s booze barn is as similar to a neighbourhood bottleshop as a goldfish is to a pet dog, according to the man responsible for upholding the Darwin Dan Murphy’s ban.

NT Civil and Administrative Tribunal president Richard Bruxner used the bizarre simile to justify the rejection of Dan Murphy’s appeal against the Liquor Commission’s decision to refuse the retailer a liquor licence.

Dan Murphy’s had applied to transfer a liquor licence from a small BWS store formerly located in Stuart Park to the proposed mega bottlo near Bunnings on Bagot Rd.

Mr Bruxner wrote in his reasoning that things being substituted for one another needed to have “substantial similarity”.

“If for example, what is being substituted or replaced is a family pet, there will likely be a range of animals that potentially qualify, as well as others that obviously do not,” he wrote.

“If what is being replaced is a pet dog, then a goldfish or even a cat is unlikely to be regarded as a substitute.”

The Territory has a moratorium on new takeaway liquor licences but allows for licences to be transferred between stores.

Mr Bruxner wrote that if a Dan Murphy’s could be substituted for a BWS, the moratorium would be “rendered essentially toothless”.

Despite outlining that view, Mr Bruxner wrote NTCAT’s rejection of Dan Murphy’s appeal was “nothing to do with whether or not a Dan Murphy’s in Darwin would be a good idea”.

Instead, the decision hinged on whether a licence could be transferred to a store which did not yet exist, he wrote.

Chief Minister Michael Gunner vowed the store would open, even if the Government needed to change the law.

He said NTCAT’s decision was a “technical and impractical” one.

Mr Gunner acknowledged his Government bore some responsibility for the fact Dan Murphy’s still had no Darwin presence, years after the store first approached the then-CLP government about setting up.

“We made a mistake in the early days around the floor space issue,” he said.

“We are going to go away and do the work to fix this.”

Attorney-General Natasha Fyles said the Government would consider lifting the moratorium if need be.

“Alcohol is not illegal – it is a restricted product but Territorians should have access to that product,” she said.

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Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education policy and research director Trish Hepworth said the organisation would be “seriously concerned by any political fix that would place alcohol business interests above the lives of Territorians”.

“NTCAT has clearly seen through Woolworths’ efforts to circumvent the NT Government moratorium on new liquor licence applications; a moratorium put in place with the sole purpose of reducing what is an unacceptable level of alcohol harm in the NT,” she said.