Alcohol restrictions are likely to be introduced in Carnarvon to help the West Australian tourist town deal with a spike in antisocial behaviour.
Additional police have been sent to the northern coastal town in WA’s Gascoyne region, where businesses have been burgled, and a police vehicle was allegedly rammed by a stolen car last month.
Premier Mark McGowan says stakeholders have failed to reach a consensus, leaving the state government with no choice but to intervene.
“We’re now looking very closely at what else we can do in Carnarvon to deal with it,” he told reporters on Monday.“The efforts that have been gone to to get the local liquor suppliers to agree to restrictions have really not come up with anything significant over a long period of time.
“It’s time the state government actually looked seriously at what we can do in Carnarvon.”
McGowan declined to say what specific measures could be introduced but noted that Carnarvon, unlike other regional communities further north, had lacked “any real restrictions or any rules” around the sale and purchase of alcohol.
The premier visited Carnarvon last week, meeting with police, local business owners and community leaders.
“Virtually everyone I met said more needs to be done,” he said.
The likely introduction of alcohol restrictions in Carnarvon could lead to similar rules being introduced in other regional communities, with the Goldfields towns of Laverton and Leonora experiencing similar issues.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese visited Kalgoorlie on Monday as part of a two-day visit to WA that also includes a cabinet meeting in Port Hedland.
He will reportedly host a $1500 per head fundraiser in Perth on Monday night.
Federal Nationals leader David Littleproud, who was in Carnarvon on Monday, said Mr Albanese should visit the town to speak with community leaders.
“These towns need help, support and government intervention,” he said.
“It’s heartbreaking to witness what this town is going through because Carnarvon has incredible potential.”
Federal Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has flagged plans to visit Laverton and Leonora after holding events in Perth on Monday.
He claimed “rivers of grog” were flowing into regional communities after the federal government’s scrapped a cashless debit card program, which quarantined a portion of a person’s benefit payments.
“There are a lot of mayors here in WA at the moment, in regional and remote areas, who are very worried that they’re heading down the Alice Springs path,” he told reporters.
McGowan has declined to say whether he supports the decision to end the cashless debit scheme, describing it as a federal matter.
