A BDO prohibits an individual from consuming, possessing or purchasing alcohol. Photo: LordHenriVoton.
The Northern Territory Police have issued 732 Banned Drink Orders (BDO) since measures to reduce alcohol-related harm in the territory were implemented on 11 December, 2023.
The Territory Government says a BDO goes a step further than the previous Banned Drinker Register (BDR) by providing them with a more streamlined process.
A BDO prohibits an individual from consuming, possessing or purchasing alcohol; this stops the misuse of alcohol and assists in protecting others. A BDO may be issued for between seven days and 12 months, and provides referral to alcohol treatment programs ranging from psychosocial interventions to counselling and residential rehabilitation.
BDOs can be issued by police following an alcohol-related interaction, by the BDR registrar following a referral by an authorised person, by choice through a self-referral to the BDR, or as a condition of a court or parole order.
The BDO measures were implemented after a BDR review that recommended the threshold be lowered for people caught drink-driving to be added to the BDR, from the second offence to the first offence.
While the review found the BDR measures were essentially ”sound”, it recommended that people be added to the BDR if it’s suspected by police that they were affected by alcohol in relation to a contravention of a domestic violence order.
Other recommendations in the review included a moratorium on issuing new takeaway-liquor licences, a limit on appeals of NT Liquor Commission decisions through the NT Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NTCAT), and that a person illegally consuming alcohol in a public place can be identified by police.
In conjunction with the stronger BDO measures, a trial change to bottle shop trading hours also started in December. The later opening hours supported police operations and helped protect those most vulnerable to the harms of alcohol. This trial will conclude on 26 January.
The Territory Government says police and Liquor Licensing NT will launch a two-week blitz on known hotspots, targeting alcohol-driven anti-social behaviour. Additionally, police and industry leaders are exploring how to expand the use of the BDR, and other data, to target secondary supply.
Minister for Police and Minister for Alcohol Policy Brent Potter said continuing to curb alcohol-related harm was a main focus of the Territory Government.
“This new data shows that the faster way to issue Banned Drinking Orders (BDO) is working,” he said. “Stopping the supply of alcohol to problem drinkers keeps more people safe.
“Some 732 BDOs have been issued in the past month, and that will continue to rise. When a BDO is issued, support services for the individual are also provided, including psychosocial interventions, counselling and residential rehabilitation.
“By strengthening police powers to issue BDOs, we can protect those harmed by alcohol and help problem drinkers break the cycle.
“I also thank our hospitality industry, and liquor retailers, for working with us to undertake the opening-hours trial.”
