AQW 18202/17-22


Mr Andrew Muir
Alliance Party
North Down


Tabled Date: 29/04/2021
Answered On Date: 11/05/2021
Priority Written: No


Question:
To ask the Minister of Justice to outline (i) the powers the police have relating to drinking in public places; and (ii) whether consideration has been given to reviewing the effectiveness of these powers.


Answer:
Police powers to curb on street drinking are manifested in a number of different pieces of legislation. The Local Government Act (Northern Ireland) 1972 gives district councils the power to make bye-laws prohibiting consumption of intoxicating liquor in public places. Once an area is designated, it is an offence to consume alcohol in that area. This legislation provides police and council officers the power to take the name and address of offenders for consideration of prosecution, although it is the Council who proceed with that prosecution and there is no power to remove alcohol from individuals. The Department for Communities (DfC) has responsibility for this legislation.
Part 5, Articles 68 – 72, of the Criminal Justice (NI) Order 2008, brought forward on behalf of the then Department of Social Development, now DfC, aimed to address the lack of power to remove alcohol in the existing bye-law system. These provisions were intended to allow for the seizure of open containers which contain, or had at any time contained, intoxicating liquor in designated areas. Subsequent legal advice has confirmed these provisions do not contain any power to seize alcohol and consequently Articles 68 - 72 of the Order have not yet been commenced.
In the meantime, the Department of Justice has provided police with additional powers, via the Justice Act (Northern Ireland) 2011, to issue fixed penalty notices for a number of public order offences related to public drinking including being drunk in a public place, indecent behaviour, disorderly behaviour and behaviour likely to cause a breach of the peace.
With regards to young people, police have powers under the Confiscation of Alcohol (Young Persons) Act 1997, allowing them to request the surrender of alcohol from under 18’s and for the disposal of alcohol surrendered. Again there is no power to seize alcohol although failure to comply with this request is an offence which may lead to arrest.
A review of the effectiveness of on street drinking legislation, including Part 5 of the Criminal Justice (NI) Order 2008 and Council byelaws, is included in the current ASB Legislation Review on which my Department leads a multi-agency Delivery Group. My officials are engaging with the PSNI and DfC, as the Department with overarching responsibility for alcohol legislation, with a view to ensuring relevant legislation is appropriate to address this issue.