Iemma Come Clean with Online Betting
Upper House member Rev Dr Gordon Moyes has denounced Premier Iemma’s decision to allow giant global gaming company, Betfair, a licence to operate online betting in NSW after the Premier intervened to make his Gaming and Racing Minister Graham West hold discussions with the gambling agency.
Being a strong campaigner against the ills of gambling addiction has not hampered Dr Moyes from speaking out against the Premier’s decision. “Clearly the NSW Government has once again ignored the negative and detrimental effect that gambling has on our society. Online betting allows more and more people especially young people to have easy accessibility to gambling”, he said.
This move demonstrates the NSW Government’s dependence on revenue from betting and gambling. Dr Moyes said, “The NSW Government has relied more and more on gambling revenue to fund the state’s fledging schools and hospitals. Its decision to allow pubs to introduce the Keno game, a refusal to rule out lifting the cap on poker machine numbers at individual hotels, the possible sale of lottery tickets in convenience stores, clearly highlights the NSW Government’s close alliance with gaming interests such as PBL. What next? A second casino”.
In 2006, Rev The Hon. Dr Gordon Moyes asked the following questions in Parliament: “Is the Minister aware that international gambling conglomerates wish to introduce mobile phone betting games and lotteries into Australia to operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week? Is the Minister aware that the second-largest conglomerate in the world, Intralot, has applied for a lottery licence in Victoria already, and seeks to establish around-the-clock mobile phone gambling as a way of boosting the participation of young Australians in gaming and lotteries?
The Minister for Gaming and Racing provided the following response: “I am aware of media reports indicating that Intralot has expressed an interest in expanding its gaming operations into Australia. I understand that the Victorian Government is currently undergoing a tender process for public lottery licenses. The protection of young people is paramount. That is why the Government has no intention of allowing any new or existing public lottery licensee in NSW to provide gambling or lotteries on mobile phones”.
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