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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1998 Week 11 Hansard (10 December) . . Page.. 3564 ..

sale of liquor to minors provision in the Act, due to the wording of the offence and the legislative history of change to that offence.

While a very strict liability would apply to liquor licensees in relation to the offence of sale of liquor to a minor, it needs to be remembered that licensees can avail themselves of the statutory defence contained in the Act if they have sighted one of the approved forms of identification - Driver's Licence, Proof of Age Card or a Passport.

Even in circumstances where they have not taken this precaution and a conviction follows, the circumstances of the offence, whether staff have been adequately trained in relation to the obligations of the Act, the apparent age of the minor and the reasonableness of the belief that the minor was of or above the age of 18 years are all issues that can be taken into account when determining an appropriate penalty.

The Government therefore proposes to amend Mr Osborne's Bill as detailed in the amendment circulated in my name.

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