The NSW Independent Liquor & Gaming Authority (ILGA) publishes guidelines on its website to inform and provide guidance to stakeholders about ILGA’s processes and factors the Authority considers when making decisions.
ILGA amended Guidelines 3, 6 and 9 to reflect updates to legislation, case law, research and the Authority’s processes and procedures, as explained below:
Guideline 3
Guideline 3 relates to ILGA’s responsibilities to minimise harms and its powers to impose, revoke or vary licence conditions under section 53 of the Liquor Act 2007 (Liquor Act).
ILGA updated Guideline 3 to refer to the NSW Court of Appeal’s decision in ILGA v Whitebull HTL Pty Ltd & Ors [2023] NSWCA 224 which affirmed the Authority’s responsibilities and powers to impose harm minimisation conditions on liquor and gaming machine applications and consider the impact of gaming machines on the community under section 53 of the Liquor Act.
In addition, ILGA updated Guideline 3 to remind licensees the Authority can impose, vary or revoke conditions under section 53 of the Liquor Act at any time, even if there is no application or matter relating to the licence before ILGA at the relevant time.
Guideline 6
Guideline 6 relates to the Authority’s requirement under section 48(5) of the Liquor Act to consider the social impact on the community when granting certain licence, authorisation or approval applications.
ILGA updated Guideline 6 to reflect a change which came into effect on 1 July 2024 under the 24-Hour Economy Legislation Amendment (Vibrancy Reforms) Act 2023 (Vibrancy Reforms Act).
The Vibrancy Reforms Act introduced the requirement for an applicant to prepare and submit a Statement of Risk and Potential Effects (SoRPE). This replaced the requirement for an applicant to prepare and submit a Community Impact Statement (CIS). In addition, ILGA updated Guideline 6 to reflect new research .
Guideline 9
Guideline 9 relates to the Authority’s process for the approval of a person to act as an administrator, liquidator (or in another relevant capacity) of a registered club under section 41 of the Registered Clubs Act 1976. It was last updated in 2019.
ILGA made minor administrative updates to the Guideline.
Visit https://www.ilga.nsw.gov.au/about-us/governance/guidelines to view the updated Guidelines.