The territory’s liquor stores may close earlier with new regulations next spring, according to the minister responsible for the Yukon Liquor Corp.

“We’ve been considering restrictions on off-sales hours since we worked on the new (Liquor) Act,” John Streicker told reporters Wednesday.

“The big question was around how we could try to achieve more social responsibility around alcohol.”

Streicker said round-table discussions have taken place among off-sales businesses, the territory’s chief medical officer and the RCMP to explore harm reduction regarding alcohol.

Those conversations happened in preparation for changing regulations to accompany the updated Liquor Act.

Those new regulations are tentatively set for implementation in April.

“One of the clear suggestions was around the hours of our off-sales,” Streicker said.

In 2016, while the government of former Yukon Party premier Darrell Pasloski was in office, off-sales hours were adjusted, enabling the businesses to stay open from 9 a.m. to 2 a.m. Establishments had previously been required to close at midnight.

Streicker said it’s possible that the midnight closing time will be reinstated.

Liz Hanson, the NDP MLA for Whitehorse Centre, highlighted during Wednesday’s question period that problems have arisen since the hours were extended.

Hanson cited the Putting People First Report, a comprehensive review of health and social services released last May.

“The panel reported that, since the increase in liquor off-sales hours, hospitalizations caused entirely by alcohol increased by 19 per cent in one year,” Hanson said.

“If this government is serious about addressing addiction and its impact on our health care system, these statistics demand a response.”

Hanson said the report showed that longer off-sales hours significantly increase alcohol consumption and the associated alcohol-related harms.

In 2018-19, there were 296 hospitalizations in the Yukon caused by alcohol, according to the Canadian Institute for Health Information.

That report drew a connection between hospitalizations and the longer off-sales hours, Hanson said.

Streicker said the liquor corporation is aware that the off-sales hours are posing a problem.

“The reason that’s the bigger issues is because, often, it’s when people choose to extend their drinking that it becomes less responsible drinking,” Streicker told reporters.

Hanson additionally noted that the Yukon is seeing heightened alcohol consumption in young teenagers.

Alcohol-related hospitalizations for youth aged 10-24 were three times higher in the Yukon in 2017-18 than the national average. According to the Yukon Liquor Corp., less than five youth aged 10-14 were hospitalized for harm caused by alcohol that year.

Hanson told reporters she is encouraged by the government’s plan to pull back off-sales hours, but would like to see clearer legislation around rules governing those businesses.

Hanson noted that Big Bear off-sales, located in Whitehorse Centre, was advertised to MLAs as a food-primary endeavour before it opened.

“I was told it was food-related off-sales, but … the new legislation wasn’t clear and it doesn’t specify that you actually have to be part of the same establishment,” Hanson said.

As it stands, the off-sales store operates with different opening hours than the restaurant in the same building.

“There’s a cognitive dissonance between the conversations that may have been going on with licensees and the government moving towards reducing the hours,” Hanson said.

“You know, I’m not the temperance lady – I’m saying we have a responsibility and we have to put a link between what are actions are and what our words are.”