The Fyles Government has extended takeaway alcohol restrictions in Alice Springs indefinitely, meaning no alcohol sales in the town on Monday and Tuesday, and restricted sales hours on other days, but the government has not provided the data the Chief Minister said was behind the decision.

Chief Minister and Alcohol Policy Minister Natasha Fyles said in a statement on Thursday that evidence had shown alcohol-related emergency department presentations at Alice Springs Hospital had reduced by a third and domestic violence had halved since the restrictions were introduced in January.

However, Ms Fyles did not release any data publicly to back up the claims.

Hospital data released at the end of March showed there were less than 100 domestic violence cases at the hospital in February – from a high of 246 in December 2022.

Alcohol presentations also dropped dramatically after the alcohol bans were reinstated, with 390 alcohol-related cases in February compared with 731 in December.

Ms Fyles said there had also been a decrease in alcohol related harm and assaults, and the number of children protective custody notifications had also decreased, but once again provided no evidence.

The extension means a continued total ban on takeaway alcohol sales on Mondays and Tuesdays in Alice Springs, with takeaway alcohol sales restricted to between 3pm and 7pm from Wednesday to Friday, and 11am and 8pm on Saturday, and noon until 9pm on Sundays. Customers are also limited to one transaction per day.

Ms Fyles did not say how long the extension would last for but the ABC quoted her as saying: “We will review them at some point into the future and we anticipate that will probably be in a year to 18-months.”

Alice Springs Town Council mayor Matt Patterson said the real problem had been that the federal Stronger Futures legislation had been removed without anything to replace it.

“If we didn’t remove the strong future legislation we wouldn’t be in this situation. That is the reality,” he said.

“I am probably okay for them to take these restrictions through to after the summer but prohibition doesn’t work and it won’t work.”

Ms Fyles was forced into action on alcohol policy in January due to the pressure of the crisis visit from Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to Alice Springs at short notice on January 24, himself responding to political and community pressure when the level of crime in the town made it to the national media, in part because of Action for Alice Facebook page owner Darren Clark and Mr Patterson speaking out.

The Federal Government promised $250 million in response to the Alice Springs crisis, which it said would focus on youth diversion and engagement, job creation, remote service delivery, foetal alcohol spectrum disorder, family support including domestic violence services and on-country learning.

A review of alcohol laws was ordered by Mr Albanese. The report by the then newly-appointed Central Australian Regional Controller Dorelle Anderson has never been made public, but parts of it were leaked to the media at the start of February, which showed Ms Anderson had recommended the alcohol bans on remote communities be reinstated urgently and “needs-based” funding be increased for the NT to deal with its social problems that have been years in the making.

Ms Fyles’ government, despite being warned by Indigenous groups and others of impending violence and assaults, let the federal alcohol bans for Aboriginal communities and town camps in the so-called Stronger Futures legislation lapse in mid-2022 with nothing in place to protect community members. The legislation stemmed from the 2007 federal Intervention

After the visit by the Prime Minister, Ms Fyles announced the takeaway restrictions, which were extended in April.

She also announced at the time that alcohol would again be banned in Aboriginal communities, introducing the legislation for remote communities on urgency to Parliament in February that effectively reinstated the former federal laws that lapsed, after previously saying she would not implement the bans.

Ms Fyles had previously called the bans “race-based policy”.

It meant alcohol restrictions were temporarily reinstated for remote communities including town camps around Alice Springs, with residents prevented from purchasing alcohol until such time as alcohol management plans are in place and a vote in the community is held to opt out of the bans.

Ms Fyles said the plans would have to be approved by the Director of Liquor Licensing. Communities that want to opt-out of a dry-zone will need 60 per cent of the population to vote in support of the plan. She did not say how the vote would be undertaken.

“Our police officers, our hospital staff and our social sector, who work in Alice have been loud and clear – they are all telling us that these restrictions need to stay in place. We are listening to them,” Ms Fyles said on Thursday.

“I know that some retailers may not like this approach. It’s a difficult decision, but it’s the right decision. It has to be done. And I thank retailers and other businesses for continuing to work with us.”