BC Business
Red wine cork | BCBusinessThe website will be accepting public comments until October 31
In the province’s first look at the liquor law books in more than 25 years, the government has turned to B.C. residents seeking comment on a range of issues from the legality of happy hour to the sale of beer and wine at grocery stores.
The website, which allows the public to give feedback on a diverse set of alcohol policies, went live on Saturday and will remain up and open to public comments until Oct. 31.
Richmond MLA John Yap, the recently appointed parliamentary secretary for liquor policy reform, announced over the weekend that the website will be complemented by a Twitter town hall and consultations with various stakeholders, including health authorities, police agencies and the province’s vintner associations.
“I’ve already been able to meet with a number of industry and stakeholder groups to listen to their feedback and ideas on liquor reform, but I know British Columbians have many opinions of their own as well,” Yap said in a statement. “We want to hear all of those over the next six weeks and I’m looking forward to actively engaging with people around the province through social media during that time to hear their ideas and their stories.”
“Our government has been hearing from industry and stakeholders about changes they would like made to B.C.’s liquor laws,” said Attorney General and Minister of Justice Suzanne Anton in a statement. “This is the first review to take place in over a decade and the time is now to also hear from British Columbians.”
Among the features rolled out on the government’s new site is an interactive map listing all licensed liquor establishments in the province.
Within hours, the site’s two posts had attracted more than 500 comments, ranging from complaints about the loose enforcement of pint sizes to the undue burden that special occasion licenses, often needed to serve alcohol at weddings and special events, place on local authorities.