![]() “Significant reforms have already been implemented and more are underway. Gambling Industry Regulation Gets Tighter Either way, the state’s determined to hold very tight control over the industry and ensure that Crown Perth, which is the only casino in the state, is held to rigorous standards. Racing and Gaming Minister Reece Whitby reminded that Crown Perth was already found not fit to hold a license but remarked that it was now undergoing a remediation process which would decide if things can return back to normal. EGMs are not readily available across Western Australia, nor is there any intention to make them available beyond Burswood. Meanwhile, the government has said that the new proposals made about EGMs will in fact help strengthen the overall regulation of the gambling sector in the industry. Crown Perth is currently undergoing an impendent review which will carry through September 2024 to find out if the property is suitable to hold a license. The case of Crown Resorts, which has been linked to junket operators, has served as a catalyst for much bigger changes in the industry. These are just some of the proposals pitched by the Royal Commission which is looking to make the property safer. Royal Commission Takes Good Look at EGMsĪmong those recommendations is a suggestion to put a mandatory AU$10 ($7) betting limit on electronic gaming machines (EGMs), as well as pre-set weekly loss and time limit, along with carded play for all machines. Sunlight the best disinfectantīut before the official inquiries, it was the media that first exposed Crown's bad behaviour.ĭogged and difficult reporting – staring down threats, bluster and lies from powerful figures – has brought undone gambling giant Crown Resorts.In a report by Asgam, the Royal Commission has deemed it appropriate to put forward for discussion a ream of proposals that would make Crown Perth more secure and less likely to commit offenses in the future. It's hard to bet with confidence which way it will go. There's another ongoing royal commission in Western Australia – looking at the flaming mess of confessed behaviour in Victoria on top of what it's uncovered locally – that will diagnose whether Crown Resorts is a fit and proper holder of a casino licence. It faces class actions from shareholders, attention from financial crime agency AUSTRAC and much more. The gap between what corporate Australia and ordinary citizens can get away with is vast. He's got two years to prepare a report – conveniently, after the next election – that will determine if Crown has done the work required to be a "fit and proper person" to run a casino.īut could the Victorian government have gone further? Easily. No-one is suggesting that former anti-corruption judge Stephen O'Bryan QC is a pushover. Now the licence continues, although the government said it would implement the recommendations of the royal commission.Ī "special manager" will be installed with the power to sit in on meetings and direct the board to do or not do certain things. Power has boosted Crown too: a proposal for the nation's tallest building adjoining the Melbourne site was waved through, avoiding normal planning processes. That heft, and political power, has protected it even through allegations of money laundering and working with junket operators linked to criminal gangs. She found it was "intolerable" that Packer demonstrated "forgetfulness or failing to turn one's mind to" a key undertaking that was designed to ensure that the casino operations "remain free from criminal influence and exploitation". When incendiary media reports exposed money laundering and links to criminal gangs, an inquiry under commissioner Patricia Bergin dug deeper. New South Wales began a probity inquiry when James Packer tried to sell his stake to business partner Lawrence Ho. Many in the line would be the corporations and investors that have been circling Crown's beleaguered Sydney development - open for hospitality, but still without a licence to operate as a casino. ![]() If Crown lost its licence there would literally be a line-up of gambling moguls ready and willing to take on its licence to operate the casino. It's hard not to wonder what exactly it would have to do to lose it? Yet it gets to keep its prized Victorian casino licence. According to the findings of a royal commission, Crown dodged paying hundreds of millions of dollars in state taxes, consorted with criminal gangs and facilitated money laundering on an epic scale.įurther, Crown failed to prevent staff from being jailed in China and shredded responsible gambling laws, all while obfuscating and lying to the regulators trying to unpick it all.
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