A Barrister's Blog

So,  have you ever wondered why you can’t buy takeaway alcohol on Good Friday (hopefully, it’s not just me)? The short answer is that its because of the Sabbatarian movement which was prominent in Australia in the 19th century.

The online Britannica tells me that Sabbatarianism is the: ” doctrine of those Christians who believe that the Sabbath (usually on Sundays) should be observed in accordance with the Fourth Commandment, which forbids work on the Sabbath because it is a holy day”.  It is a word that originates from the 1600’s

If you thought Australia has a drinking culture now, it was apparently a lot “boozier” in the early 1800’s. After studying contemporary accounts of heavy drinking in New South Wales during the first part of the nineteenth century, Russel Ward concluded, ‘no people on the face of the earth ever absorbed more alcohol per head of population’.

This gave rise (by around the 1830’s) to Sabbatarianism (along with the temperance movement) to prevent people working or engaging in frivolous or immoral activities like visiting pubs on the Sabbath.  The Sabbatarians didn’t have a monopoly on this and apparently as early as 321AD Constantine had decreed regulations against Sunday labour (Britannica).

So, what influence does this 200 year old  movement have on our liquor laws?

The Retail Trading Act 2008 defines “restricted trading days” as Good Friday, Easter Sunday, Anzac Day, Christmas Day or Boxing Day.  All retail shops are required to close on restricted trading days unless exempt. . Liquor traders must follow both the Retail Trading Act 2008 and the Liquor Act 2007 regarding trading restrictions and hours.

The Liquor Act (s29) prevents a holder of a “packaged liquor licence” from selling any retail liquor on a restricted trading day. That explains why the local bottle-o is closed.

It’s a bit more complex for holders of on-premises licences. Section 25(3)(c )  provides that on restricted trading days, liquor can only be sold for consumption: “between noon and 10 pm on that day (but only if the liquor is sold with or ancillary to a meal served in a dining area on the licensed premises),”. There is the possibility of an extended trading authorisation being granted outside of these hours, but with the exception of midnight to 5am, there will  still with a condition that the alcohol is provided ancillary to a meal served in a dining area on the licensed premises

So, what’s a meal? Meal is a defined term (s4): meal means a genuine meal consumed by a person at a dining table and includes, in the case of an on-premises licence that relates to accommodation premises— (a)  a meal supplied by the proprietor for immediate consumption (otherwise than at a dining table) on or away from the premises, and (b)  a picnic-style hamper supplied by the proprietor for consumption (otherwise than at a dining table) away from the premises on the same day as it is supplied.

If you think that is a little cryptic the explanation  for a similar law in QLD says that a meal must be prepared, served and eaten on the premises. A meal is food that can be eaten with cutlery while seated— for example, roast beef with vegetables, lasagne, a stir-fry or a curry with rice [standard “pub grub’]. It is not light takeaway food like snacks, hot chips, an entree or kid’s meal.

….I am starting to feel more sympathy for liquor licensees who have to navigate some of these requirements in their business.

Creative commons acknowledgment for the photograph