Police Commissioner Karl O'Callaghan is not impressed with plans for Fremantle pubs to open at 7am on Grand Final day. Picture: Kerris Berrington Source: PerthNow
LIQUOR licensing laws allowing Fremantle pubs to open as early as 7am may be changed after the weekend Grand Final revelry, Police Commissioner Karl O'Callaghan says.
Mr O'Callaghan also told a budget estimates hearing today that the first time he knew of the plan - which will allow football fans to down booze as breakfast - was when he saw it on the front page of a newspaper.
``We will be revisiting or visiting the trading hours in Fremantle after this matter,'' Mr O'Callaghan said.
"I've been saying for a long time that if we need to change the culture of drinking in Western Australia, and particularly binge drinking, we need to send the right messages to the community. I don't think opening up at 7am on any day is a very responsible thing to from a licensee's perspective," Mr O'Callaghan said.
"If it's history then I think it's time to revisit it, to think if it's appropriate trading in today's environment. I don't see any reason for people to be drinking alcohol at 7am in the morning and I'll bet the community doesn't either. I don't think it's responsible for licensees to open at that time.
"It's too late to try and intervene in this process now. We have the right police contingent to deal with what might happen on Saturday."
WA is currently undergoing a review of the Liquor Control Act. Mr O'Callaghan is a vocal campaigner against excessive drinking and alcohol advertisements targeting young people.
He said he had not been consulted about the 7am opening hours by the minister responsible for racing, gaming and liquor, Terry Waldron, despite the move requiring substantial additional police resources in Fremantle.
But Deputy Commissioner Chris Dawson said the licensing laws that allowed such early boozing applied only to Fremantle and were a historical legacy to benefit wharfies, so pubs could simply opt to exercise their right to open.
Mr Dawson said the heavy police presence would include mounted police, dogs, air support and licence enforcement officers.
Mr O'Callaghan said police would have to mount a major operation to ensure lawfulness in the Dockers homeland, and the early pub openings meant it would take far longer.
``It's likely we'll be doing that a lot earlier in the morning than we otherwise would have planned to do,'' he said.
This weekend is a long one, with WA celebrating the Queen's Birthday on a different date to the rest of Australia, and also marks the start of the week-long Perth Royal Show.
Police Minister Liza Harvey said there was no excuse for excessively drinking and driving because there would be extra trains and buses, particularly in Fremantle.
``We want people to have a really good time,'' she told Fairfax radio on Thursday.
``But please be responsible about the way that you behave.''
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