Good for BC. The system we have currently in Alberta is good by Canadian standards - only Quebec is better - however it is still far too restrictive. I would like to see the following liberalization of drinking enacted:
- Allow alcoholic beverages to be sold in grocery stores, convenience stores, and essentially wherever else food is sold. A no brainer.
- Allow drinking in outdoor public spaces, parks, sidewalks etc. End the beer garden segregation at festivals.
- Privatize the distribution system.
- Remove the stipulation that licensed restaurant patios have a 2 foot fence around them, there's no need for it.
- Remove closing time restrictions. Allow the market to determine the hours at which bars will be open, if there's demand for all-night drinking then so be it. I think this would cut down on violence with all bar patrons currently spilling on to the street at 2 am, and it would also ease the taxi crunch by having staggered closing times.
Liquor laws in Canada are still some of the most restrictive in the (western) world which is strange considering how liberal we are as a society.
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