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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, First Session (54-1)
2019-05-15 Daily Xml
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Illegal Offshore Gambling

Mr ELLIS (Narungga) (14:09): My question is to the Attorney-General. Can the Attorney update the house on what measures the federal government has taken to curb illegal offshore gambling?

The Hon. V.A. CHAPMAN (Bragg—Deputy Premier, Attorney-General) (14:10): Last month, I advised the house—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. V.A. CHAPMAN: —that I had written to the federal minister regarding the commonwealth's intention to address illegal offshore gambling activity. This was done in light of the endorsement—

The Hon. S.C. Mullighan interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Lee is called to order.

The Hon. V.A. CHAPMAN: —of the National Consumer Protection Framework by all states to address online gambling. I can advise that minister Fifield has responded to my letter and outlined three important initiatives, which I will advise the house of.

Firstly, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has commenced work with the Communications Alliance on the replacement and registration of the new Internet Gambling Industry Code under the Interactive Gambling Act 2001. Illegal offshore wagering websites will be blocked under this code, and it is anticipated that they will be in place by the middle of the year. It is aimed that online casino services will eventually be included.

Secondly, the Interactive Gambling Amendment Act has equipped ACMA with stronger enforcement powers to tackle illegal offshore wagering. I am pleased to report that, in the first year of operation, the enhanced powers have resulted in over 60 of the most popular illegal offshore wagering sites withdrawing their operation and services from South Australia.

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN: Point of order, Mr Speaker: I raise a point of debate. The Deputy Premier asked about what she was doing, not what another government is doing.

The SPEAKER: I have the point of order. I will be listening carefully.

The Hon. V.A. CHAPMAN: I was asked to give an update—

The SPEAKER: There is a point of order on the point of order. I haven't upheld the point of order.

The Hon. V.A. CHAPMAN: Mr Speaker, I was asked to give an update on what measures the federal government has taken to curb illegal offshore gambling.

The SPEAKER: Yes, I will be listening carefully. The Deputy Premier has the call.

The Hon. V.A. CHAPMAN: The third matter in response to my letter was the implementation of the National Consumer Protection Framework, which addresses the problem and proliferation of online gambling. I have informed the house of this important online wagering reform previously, but importantly it:

prevents payday lenders from advertising with online gambling platforms;

imposes stricter time frames on online wagering providers to verify their customers' identity to better prevent underage persons or those who have been excluded;

prohibits inducements so that the gambling providers will be banned from giving rewards or other benefits to open an account or successfully refer someone; and

establishes a national self-exclusion register.

Given particularly the member for Lee's interest in advancing what we are doing to supplement that, I indicate the following:

funding to 28 gambling health services across all South Australian regions, and 12 of those are specific to Aboriginal and culturally and linguistically diverse audiences;

funding a 24/7 gambling helpline;

working with gambling venues to develop targeted harm minimisation materials; and

finally, and amazingly this did not happened until this government came in, making the Liquor and Gambling Commissioner the sole regulator for the gambling sector in this state, which has resulted in same-day barring orders, unlike the 10 days it took under the previous Labor government via the Independent Gambling Authority.

I am proud of what we have done in South Australia. I am pleased at the federal level that there have been major initiatives, including the withdrawal of some 60 of the most popular offshore online gambling sites. There is always vigilant work to be done here, particularly given the Minister for Human Services' recently published survey that this is still a minority option for gambling, but it is a significant and growing one, and we will continue to be vigilant for the same.

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