Natasha Griggs (Solomon, Country Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise today to try to slash some of the myths being spread by the Labor Party about the impact of the Banned Drinker Register on hospitalisation rates in the Northern Territory. Members will recall that the Banned Drinker Register was established by the previous Labor administration in the Northern Territory to reduce crime and personal injury as a result of alcohol. In short, the register was an electronic database where customers looking to buy takeaway alcohol were asked to provide photo identification.

It has been claimed by a number of Labor members of parliament, most notably the former Prime Minister Julia Gillard and her captain's pick, that alcohol related emergency department admissions in Northern Territory hospitals increased substantially when the register was scrapped by the Country Liberals government.

Last week the ABC's Fact Check unit revealed that, while alcohol related admissions had spiked, this increase began in May 2012 when the register was still in place. In other words, the register did not stop the long-term increasing trend in alcohol related emergency presentations in Northern Territory hospitals. It is absolutely shameful that Labor is using the misfortune of some of the Territory's most disadvantaged people for political pointscoring. It is just disgraceful.