The National Government has swung in behind the breweries in their attempts to deny the Terawhiti Trust power to set up retail liquor outlets in the Karori/Kelburn area.

After struggling for three years to establish a bottle store in Karori, the Terawhiti Trust has been finally hampered within an inch of success by the Prime Minister. Mr Muldoon, refusing to approve the borrowing of finance.

The Terawhiti Trust is responsible for the Wellington West area which includes Karori, Wilton, Northland, Kelburn Highbury, Aro Valley, Kingston, Vogeltown, Red Rocks. Makara, and parts of Brooklyn. It covers one of the largest trust areas in New Zealand.

The struggles started at the 1972 election when Wellington West gained the required 60% vote (12 votes over 60%) to turn it from a dry to a wet area. As soon as it was announced, six Karori Baptists asked for a magisterial recount, which subsequently reduced the extra 12 votes to eight.

Next, the area could not legally be declared wet until 90 days after the final figures were known. During this time public meetings were called in Northland and Brooklyn to form a Wellington West Licensing Trust Committee.