Will 21 be the new legal drinking age?

The legal drinking limit will soon be raised from 18 to 21 years.

A draft of new amendments to the Liquor Act at Parliament along with amendments to the Gambling Act is receiving attention in parliament.

The new Bill calls for the prohibition of the manufacturing, distribution or retail sale of liquor in both rural and urban communities, on any location that is less than 500 metres away from schools, places of worship, recreational facilities, rehabilitation or treatment centres, residential areas, public institutions and other like amenities.

Manufacturers and suppliers of alcohol to illegal or unlicensed outlets will effectively be liable for all damages caused by their unlawful distribution.

This includes any unlawful conduct, death or injury and/or the loss of or physical damage to property caused by a person who has been sold alcohol from an illegal distributor.

While legal experts and industry associations have praised the hard-line stance on illegal sellers, they’ve warned it could have serious social and legal repercussions and would negatively impact alcohol sold in townships, which forms a significant part of their economies.

Current alcohol advertising prohibits the airing of adverts featuring alcohol between 14:00 and 17:00 on weekdays and before 12:00 on weekends on TV. On radio the restrictions are 06:00 to 09:00 and 14:00 to 17:00 on weekdays and no advertising before 12:00 on weekends.

The new Bill will ban all alcohol advertisements on radio and TV between 06:00 and 19:00. In addition it will ban any billboard advertising placed less than 100 meters away from junctions, street corners or traffic circles.

Liquor manufacturers, distributors and retailers have devised a set of proposals to deal with alcohol abuse, offering it as an alternative to the Department of Trade and Industry’s proposed Liquor Amendment Bill.

Addressing parliament about the Bill in October 2016, Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies explained that the change was introduced both to curb early on-set alcoholism and to prevent any potential brain-damage as the human brain does not fully develop until the mid-twenties.

How do you feel about these strict regulations?

ALSO READ:

https://www.citizen.co.za/witbank-news/53198/authorities-crack-down-on-illegal-alcohol-traders/

https://www.citizen.co.za/witbank-news/79922/south-africans-are-not-the-worlds-biggest-alcohol-consumers/