Media release: Aotearoa New Zealand ranks lowest in international alcohol policy comparison

New research comparing alcohol control policies across 11 international jurisdictions has placed Aotearoa New Zealand at the bottom of the list, highlighting urgent gaps in policy settings that could better protect the public from alcohol harm.

In the latest Public Health Communication Centre Briefing, the International Alcohol Control Policy Index is used to assess the strength of alcohol policy across four areas with the strongest evidence of effectiveness: pricing, availability, marketing, and drink driving countermeasures.

New Zealand scored lowest overall in the Index, performing worse than six countries and four Canadian provinces. Researchers say the poor result reflects weak controls on alcohol marketing and longer-than-average trading hours, both of which are known to contribute to increased alcohol harm.

“Alcohol marketing remains largely unregulated in New Zealand, and long legal trading hours mean alcohol is more widely available here than in most other countries in the study,” says lead co-author Prof Casswell of Massey University.

On drink driving policy, NZ was similar to most jurisdictions, however, four scored higher due to having zero tolerance alcohol policy for professional drivers or an adult limit below .05%. NZ scored below average in terms of alcohol tax (measured by the percentage of low-cost alcohol products’ price that comes from tax).

Countries with the highest scores, Lithuania, Norway, and Ireland, have all implemented stronger, more comprehensive alcohol legislation in recent years. Recent reforms in Lithuania have shown positive impacts on health outcomes and reduced inequities.

“New Zealand’s alcohol laws have remained relatively static for a decade,” said Prof Casswell. “Meanwhile, other countries have moved forward with evidence-based reforms to reduce harm. This Index helps highlight where we are falling behind and where action is needed.”