Yellowknife (Mar 05/04) - The number of liquor inspections in the NWT isn't out of line with the rest of the country according to a recent report commissioned by the Liquor Licensing Board.

"We're slightly above the national average, but we think that's appropriate given the elevated levels of alcohol abuse in the NWT," said board chairman John Simpson.

The report came out two weeks after one Yellowknife bar owner complained licensed establishments in the city were being "harassed" by inspectors.

"This report shows that's not the case," said Simpson.

The report culled information on the frequency of inspections from five provinces and territories: Nova Scotia, Ontario, Manitoba, B.C. and the Yukon.

Like the NWT, most of jurisdictions surveyed place bars into low, medium and high risk categories.

In the NWT, high risk establishments -- which are usually bars with a history of previous violations -- are inspected about twice per week. That total is similar to practices in Ontario, Nova Scotia and the Yukon. In B.C., high risk bars are inspected once per month.

"It's important to closely monitor the situation," said Simpson on the inspections.

"The public wants us to do something about alcohol abuse and we're determined to do our part," he said.

Last year, roughly 7,000 inspections were conducted by liquor board employees and members of the RCMP.

In 2001-02, 5,901 inspections were conducted, 1,782 of which were by liquor board enforcement officers.