Local Alcohol Policy

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Consultation has concluded, we'll analyse the results and update the proposal.

Our Local Alcohol Policy came into effect in 2018 and is now due for a review. As part of this review, information was sought from the Police, Medical Officers of Health, and Hutt City Council’s City Safety Manager and Licensing Inspectors.

What is a Local Alcohol Policy?

The Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012 sets out the requirements and processes regarding local alcohol policies.

Local alcohol policies aim to minimise alcohol-related harm and to set requirements for licensing that are aligned with community views.

Local alcohol policies are not mandatory. Without a local alcohol policy, the national default settings would apply.

Local alcohol policies are able to:

  • restrict or extend trading hours of premises;
  • limit whether further licenses should be issued in the district or part of the district;
  • limit the location of licenses in relation to premises and facilities, for example, public shopping areas;
  • impose one-way door conditions; and
  • provide for the issue of licenses subject to discretionary conditions.

A major feature of the current Local Alcohol Policy are caps on the number of off-licensed alcohol retailers (bottle shops, supermarkets) in some of our suburbs.

What are we proposing?

The proposal is to:

  • maintain the caps for off-licensed alcohol retailers; and
  • maintain trading hours.

The current suburb off-license caps are:

Avalon 1
Hutt Central 11
Naenae 4
Stokes Valley 3
Taita 3
Wainuiomata 6


The current trading hours are:

Off-license 7am to 10pm
On-license: taverns, hotels, nightclubs and function centres 7am to 3am
On-license: restaurants and cafes 7am to 1am
On-license: caterers 7am to 3am in Lower Hutt CBD or Jackson Street, Petone

7am to 1am in all other areas
On-license: hotels 24 hours per day
Brothels To match operating hours
Cinemas 7am to 3am


Questions to consider

  • Are there any of the current suburbs with off-license caps that you think should have their caps removed or changed? Where and why?
  • Are there any additional suburbs that should have a cap on the number of off-licenses? Where and why?
  • Should we change our trading hours?
  • Should we implement a 'sinking lid' for all or some of the off-license capped areas? This would mean when an off-license closes its license can't be transferred or a new license granted, so the number of off-licenses would be expected to fall over time.

How to have your say

You can provide feedback in multiple ways:

  • Make an online submission using the survey below.
  • Email your submission to alcohol.feedback@huttcity.govt.nz with ‘Local Alcohol Policy’ in the email subject line.
  • Drop off a submission at the front counter at our office at 30 Laings Rd.

Consultation closes 5pm Sunday 25 August 2024

Our Local Alcohol Policy came into effect in 2018 and is now due for a review. As part of this review, information was sought from the Police, Medical Officers of Health, and Hutt City Council’s City Safety Manager and Licensing Inspectors.

What is a Local Alcohol Policy?

The Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012 sets out the requirements and processes regarding local alcohol policies.

Local alcohol policies aim to minimise alcohol-related harm and to set requirements for licensing that are aligned with community views.

Local alcohol policies are not mandatory. Without a local alcohol policy, the national default settings would apply.

Local alcohol policies are able to:

  • restrict or extend trading hours of premises;
  • limit whether further licenses should be issued in the district or part of the district;
  • limit the location of licenses in relation to premises and facilities, for example, public shopping areas;
  • impose one-way door conditions; and
  • provide for the issue of licenses subject to discretionary conditions.

A major feature of the current Local Alcohol Policy are caps on the number of off-licensed alcohol retailers (bottle shops, supermarkets) in some of our suburbs.

What are we proposing?

The proposal is to:

  • maintain the caps for off-licensed alcohol retailers; and
  • maintain trading hours.

The current suburb off-license caps are:

Avalon 1
Hutt Central 11
Naenae 4
Stokes Valley 3
Taita 3
Wainuiomata 6


The current trading hours are:

Off-license 7am to 10pm
On-license: taverns, hotels, nightclubs and function centres 7am to 3am
On-license: restaurants and cafes 7am to 1am
On-license: caterers 7am to 3am in Lower Hutt CBD or Jackson Street, Petone

7am to 1am in all other areas
On-license: hotels 24 hours per day
Brothels To match operating hours
Cinemas 7am to 3am


Questions to consider

  • Are there any of the current suburbs with off-license caps that you think should have their caps removed or changed? Where and why?
  • Are there any additional suburbs that should have a cap on the number of off-licenses? Where and why?
  • Should we change our trading hours?
  • Should we implement a 'sinking lid' for all or some of the off-license capped areas? This would mean when an off-license closes its license can't be transferred or a new license granted, so the number of off-licenses would be expected to fall over time.

How to have your say

You can provide feedback in multiple ways:

  • Make an online submission using the survey below.
  • Email your submission to alcohol.feedback@huttcity.govt.nz with ‘Local Alcohol Policy’ in the email subject line.
  • Drop off a submission at the front counter at our office at 30 Laings Rd.

Consultation closes 5pm Sunday 25 August 2024

  • CLOSED: This survey has concluded.

    Have your say

    Let us know your thoughts on caps for off-licenses, trading hours, and other aspects of the Local Alcohol Policy. 

    Full details can be found in the Statement of Proposal.

    Should we add or remove suburbs with caps on off-licenses? Should the caps be changed? Should we have a 'sinking lid' on the caps so that when an off-license closes it can't be replaced? Do the trading hours need changing?


    Consultation closes 5pm Sunday 25 August


    Privacy Statement

    We require your name, contact details and the suburb you live in as part of your feedback. All feedback will be published on our website with your name. All other personal or commercially sensitive information (including your email address and suburb) will be removed. Publishing feedback in full supports a transparent process and will assist in the public hearing process.

    If you have specific reasons for not wanting your feedback publicly released, please contact alcohol.feedback@huttcity.govt.nz.

    The feedback form asks for the suburb you live in to better understand how you are impacted by the changes happening in your suburb.

    Public Hearings

    The feedback form also asks if you want to present directly to Councillors at a hearing. If you state that you do want to present to Councillors, you will be contacted by council staff to arrange a time for you to speak.

    Feedback will be considered by Council regardless of whether you wish to present your views at a hearing or not. Final decisions will be made in September 2024 and the Local Alcohol Policy will be adopted in October 2024.

    Storing personal information

    Council stores information with reasonable safeguards against loss and disclosure. Reasonable safeguards include physical and technological protections. Personal information is accessible to staff who have a legitimate reason to access it. Council has a code of conduct where unauthorised disclosure of confidential information or records in accordance with the provisions of the Public Records Act, which includes the authorised destruction of records once they are no longer required to be kept for legislative compliance or business purposes.

    Access to your information

    The information you provide will be accessible only by Council staff and is not shared with any third party. You have the right to ask for a copy of any personal information we hold about you, and to ask for it to be corrected if you think it is wrong. If you’d like to ask for a copy of your information, or to have it corrected, please contact us at policy@huttcity.govt.nz, or 04 570 6666, or 30 Laings Road, Lower Hutt 5010.

    Consultation has concluded, we'll analyse the results and update the proposal.
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