On this day in 1994, the ACT government went ahead with plans to ban alcohol sales after midnight. The cause of the ban was the ongoing violence in Civic.
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Doubling down, Terry Connolly, the attorney-general, stated should the violence not reduce in six months, nightclubs could be forced to close earlier.
This ardent stand also drew strong support from the opposition at the time. Unsurprisingly, businesses that sold alcohol such as the Australian Hotel Association and East Row Liquor and Grocery were not happy with the ban.
Gary Rusk, one of the managers of East Row Liquor and Grocery, stated the decision would "pull the rugs out" from the under the business. The store was open until the wee hours of the morning during weekends and the takings between 12-3am made up 30 per cent of its overall takings for the two days.
He questioned the impact, if any, the ban would have on the ongoing violence in Civic. Rusk reiterated "the problems in Civic were here before we came and they'll still be here if they make us close early". The ban would leave Coles and Woolworths unaffected, as they closed before midnight.
The police, however, had been pushing for nightclubs to close at 3am due to massive drunken brawls and assaults. Connolly did not share this view and he was worried patrons would inevitably begin binge drinking on the streets instead.
These concerns over alcohol and violence seem to have faded from public view as since the start of 2024, new regulations have granted extensions to licensed cafes and restaurants with less than 80 seats to 2am. This was introduced in a bid to boost night-time trading in the capital.
