Australia: cashless gambling proposal gains support
Members of religious institutions and community service organisations have expressed their support for cashless gambling in New South Wales.
Australia.- Religious and community groups have spoken in support of Crown Resorts‘ move to comply with New South Wales Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority’s (ILGA) request that it it implement cashless casino gaming.
Rev Simon Hansford, moderator of the Uniting Church Synod of NSW, and Rev Stu Cameron, CEO and superintendent of Wesley Mission, have expressed their support for the cashless gambling measure and its extension to other operators.
They have discussed the topic with Rev Tim Costello, chief advocate for the Alliance for Gambling Reform.
Cameron said: “A radical change such as this move towards cashless gambling could have a considerable impact on people who are experiencing gambling harm, which is a significant number of people in NSW.”
Costello said the cashless gambling system should be linked to verified ID and to self-exclusion registers.
He also said it must include low load limits to ensure people regularly take breaks from gambling. He again called for a ban on credit card gambling.
Star Entertainment, which has made a bid to buy Crown Resorts, has also agreed to advance towards cashless gambling to help tackle money laundering.
The move is expected to allow casino operators to stop working with junket operators and to make their operations more transparent.
Responsible Wagering Australia against ban on credit card gambling
Responsible Wagering Australia (RWA), an independent trade advocacy body for Australian‑licensed wagering providers has responded against a proposal to ban credit card gambling.
The body argued that there was no evidence for a link between problem gambling and the use of credit cards for online gambling.
The ILGA had proposed a plan to introduce pre-paid gambling cards as Patricia Bergin’s report into Crown Resorts’ suitability to hold its Sydney casino licence, suggested that “cards would be a good system to combat money-laundering.”
However, that proposal was rejected by the National Party as it would affect pubs and clubs already impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic.
