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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
2021-02-17 Daily Xml
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Gambling Regulation

The Hon. F. PANGALLO (14:40): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Treasurer, representing the Attorney-General as Minister for Consumer and Business Affairs in the other place, a question about gambling regulation.

Leave granted.

The Hon. F. PANGALLO: A report released last week in New South Wales found Crown Resorts is currently not suitable to hold a casino licence in that state, despite having already built a $2.2 billion complex in Sydney's new Barangaroo precinct. The Bergen report, undertaken by former Supreme Court judge Patricia Bergen, uncovered major flaws in the company's corporate governance, which facilitated money laundering and links to criminal gangs in Crown's operations in Victoria and Western Australia.

The report has today prompted Western Australia's gambling regulator to recommend the McGowan government establish an independent inquiry into Crown's suitability to hold the state's only casino licence. The report also recommended taking gambling regulation away from state and territory watchdogs, which would align casinos with online gambling as a responsibility of the federal government and could help in the fight against money laundering and criminal interference. My question to the Treasurer is:

1. Given the scathing findings of the Bergen report, has the minister sought advice from South Australia's gaming regulator, the Commissioner for Consumer and Business Services, on whether an independent inquiry needs to be conducted into SkyCity Casino's operations to ensure such illegal activities aren't occurring here?

2. Does the minister have confidence money laundering and criminal gang activity doesn't occur at SkyCity?

3. Since the scrapping of the independent gambling regulator, what investigations, reviews, checks and balances does the Commissioner for Consumer and Business Services undertake at SkyCity to ensure such illegal activity doesn't or cannot occur?

4. Does the minister support the recommendations that say to take gambling regulation away from state and territory watchdogs?

The Hon. R.I. LUCAS (Treasurer) (14:42): I am happy to refer the honourable member's questions to the minister and bring back a reply, but I must say that I would be stunned if the Attorney-General and the minister would have a view that we would hand this sort of regulation across to the federal government. The Hon. Mr Pangallo must have much greater confidence in the bureaucracy and the levels of controls at the federal level than at the state.

Being a fervent state writer and in particular sticking up for the smaller states, I see a very important role in terms of the roles and responsibilities of state governments and there would need to be very persuasive reasons why certainly I as an individual would support handing over more and more power to the federal government in this particular area. Anyway, I will refer that aspect of the question to the responsible minister and bring back a reply.

The only other comment I would make is that I do think it is a little unfortunate in terms of the way the honourable member has phrased the question because this was a particular inquiry into a particular company in another state, completely unrelated to the operators of the local casino. The operators of that casino have operated under the former government and under the current government, and I don't think, without evidence, their reputation, whether intended or not—and I am not saying it was intended—should be smeared merely by association with the inquiry that occurred in the state of New South Wales.

I might offer some commentary but I won't in relation to the state of New South Wales and casinos and gambling and the like, and I might leave that for another day. I do believe the circumstances in South Australia are markedly different, generally, to the circumstances that exist in the state of New South Wales. As I said, without evidence being suggested by anyone that I am aware of I think it would be unfortunate if anyone took the nature of the question that has been put in any way at this stage as smearing the reputation of the operators of the current casino licence here in South Australia. But I will refer the honourable member's questions to the minister and bring back a reply.

The PRESIDENT: The Hon. Mr Pangallo has a supplementary?

The Hon. F. PANGALLO: Just to make it clear, I am not smearing SkyCity Casino.

The PRESIDENT: No, no—is this a supplementary question?

The Hon. F. PANGALLO: Well, I'm being misrepresented.

The PRESIDENT: The Hon. Mr Hanson has the call.

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