Wagait Beach Bottlemart to partially close under alcohol sales cap

The only bottleshop in a Northern Territory tourist town has been forced to partially close due to licencing restrictions.

The only bottle shop in Wagait Beach has been forced to close another two days per week to stay under alcohol sales caps. Picture: Google Maps

A Territory town’s only bottleshop has been forced to close two days a week to meet strict government-imposed sales caps.

The Wagait Beach Bottlemart, located inside the small town’s Friendly Grocer, has had to stop selling grog on Tuesdays and Wednesdays at the risk of exceeding a quarterly 25 per cent sales cap on alcohol sales in independent grocery stores.

Store manager Crystal Wang said it was “very hard” to manage the restriction, which the government introduced in response to the Riley Review of the Territory’s alcohol policies.

“We’re servicing a big area and in the dry season we will have a lot of tourists,” she said.

“The locals are so upset and they don’t understand.

“It is very hard to run the business here, very hard.”

Wagait Beach Bottlemart has been forced to close two days a week due to the government-imposed 25 per cent cap on alcohol sales in small grocery stores. Picture: Supplied

Ms Wang said the sales cap would be easier to manage if her bottleshop was not the only source of alcohol for a population of about 600 spanning Wagait Beach and Belyuen.

The store already does not sell alcohol on Sundays, leaving locals and visitors just four days to purchase drinks.

It comes as the Liquor Commission continues to negotiate with licenced grocery stores about a licence buyback scheme.

The move was one of several new measures aimed at curbing crime and alcohol-fuelled violence in the wake of liquor store attendant Declan Laverty’s stabbing death in March.

Up to 20 of the Territory’s 51 grocery/grog shops had indicated interest in selling their licence back to the government.

Shelly Lay of Zuccoli IGA has also been forced to make snap closures of her store’s Cellarbrations in order to stay under the quarterly 25 per cent cap. Picture: PEMA TAMANG Pakhrin

Chief Minister Natasha Fyles said the move would lead to “long-term change and local decision making”.

However almost seven months later, no businesses have sold their liquor licence.

“Confidential discussions are currently under way with those licensees that elected to participate in the voluntary process,” Ms Fyles said.

“Those negotiations are continuing and once things are finalised, we’ll certainly make sure that we can provide information to Territorians but that process is ongoing.”

Liquor licences for small grocery stores can no longer be attained, as part of the government’s efforts to control the supply of alcohol.

Originally published as Wagait Beach Bottlemart to partially close under alcohol sales cap