Technical Paper 3:
Preventing Alcohol-related harm in Australia: a window of opportunity

1.5 - Recent developments in Australia

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National Binge Drinking Strategy

On 28 March 2008, the Prime Minister announced a new national strategy to address the binge drinking epidemic among young Australians.[9]

Council of Australian Governments (COAG) Binge Drinking Agreement

The Council of Australian Governments (COAG) recently agreed on the importance of tackling the harmful consumption of alcohol among young people and asked the Ministerial Council on Drug Strategy to report to it in December 2008 on options to reduce binge drinking, including in relation to closing hours, the responsible service of alcohol, reckless secondary supply and the alcohol content in ready-to-drink beverages. The Australia New Zealand Food Regulation Ministerial Council is to request Food Standards Australia New Zealand to consider mandatory health warnings on packaged alcohol.[10]

Ministerial Council on Drug Strategy (MCDS)

The work of the Ministerial Council on Drug Strategy (MCDS) includes a focus on the assessment of late-night lock-outs for licensed premises and the development of a preferred framework to more effectively target police resources on binge drinking hot spots. It is also focused on a national policy framework for the responsible service of alcohol, a preferred regulatory model to address the secondary supply of alcohol to minors, options for reducing the alcohol content in products (including those aimed at young people), possible standards and controls for alcohol advertising targeting young people, and advice regarding the impact of health warnings on alcohol products.[11]

Northern Territory initiative and other Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander specific initiatives

Perhaps the most radical experiments in responding to problems, especially among Aboriginal Australians, have been carried out in the Northern Territory. Most recently, the Northern Territory Initiative was implemented by the then Minister for Aboriginal Affairs of the previous Australian government, and is soon to be reviewed after one year of implementation. This is a complex area and this paper will not attempt to summarise interventions specific to Indigenous Australians or presume to provide comprehensive information in this area.

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