Trusts’ results ‘speak for themselves’
OPINION: When I started working out west over 10 years ago licensing trusts were foreign to me and the lack of alcohol in the supermarkets was an obvious difference. I’ve now learned The Trusts are far from a bad thing.
Trusts give public ownership and say over alcohol sales. The Trusts is governed by people you elect and can hold accountable. We balance convenience and availability against responsibility, to provide a model with lower crime and health issues, to give profits back to the community. We achieve this balance by responsibly selecting convenient locations for our retail outlets, as well as putting in place best practice procedures and staff training to prevent the sale of liquor to young and vulnerable people.
And the results speak for themselves.
An Auckland Regional Public Health Service Needs Assessment noted west Auckland had the fewest alcohol and drug-related road crashes and the least drink driving prosecutions in the Auckland Council urban areas (NZTA data). The Auckland Council Quality of Life Survey 2010 showed the West Zone was in the bottom half of perceived alcohol problems in the Auckland area.
The Trusts hasn’t had a serious failure of a police Controlled Purchase Operation (CPO) in more than five years and nearly 200 operations. CPOs are conducted by the Police throughout New Zealand to ensure that alcohol is not being sold to people under the legal age to purchase alcohol. Throughout the rest of Auckland, failure rates are as high as 60 per cent.
Our profits stay in west Auckland. That enabled us to pump $2 million into the community in three years. We’re targeting giving back $2 million per year in future. We support The Trusts Arena – last year voted the best of its kind in New Zealand. We also support The Trusts Spooks and Sparks, the country’s largest family fireworks event in New Zealand and over a hundred local community organisations and events.
The facts show The Trusts are good for the community they serve. We look forward to continuing to play our part in making west Auckland a great place to live.