Posted on Saturday, 4th July 2009 by admin
Latest proposal is for the Western Australian territory government.
A new proposal due for submission to the provincial government in Western Australia will soon have its citizens enjoying betting on state lotteries through the convenience of the Internet.
Ms. Jan Steward, CEO of LotteryWest, said that her staff is putting the final touches to allow the people of Western Australia in a policy position paper submitted to the state government for serious consideration within the next two weeks.
Initial plans will be to make all games available except those “scratch-and-win” tickets via a link on its web site. Bettors and punters will be required to open a bank account first for the purpose of age and identity verification. Further safeguards include betting limits and not allowing betting on credit. Both the highly popular Super 66 and Soccer Pools will be offered also on the proposed site.
Commentators said that as long as the initiative is couched as lottery, it will not raise alarm bells of the anti-gambling lobby. The idea is to pass the legislation without attracting too much attention from civil society opposition groups. It should also be careful not to venture into an interactive-type of casino gambling. Lastly, youngsters and teenagers must not be able to access the service to provide airtight safeguards against underage gambling.
Ms. Steward admits their proposal is merely defensive in nature because there are now many lottery offerings from nearby Aussie states which had introduced on-line lotto wagering. She further claims that LotteryWest loses an estimated A$4.1 million annually from leakages due to interstate on-line betting by West Australians themselves. This revenue loss translated to A$1.3 million less for qualified communities and charities under revenue-sharing agreements.
Sue Ash of the WA Council of Social Service said they might support the proposal if there is no interactive element involved in the gaming process as this can lead to problem gambling. She stated further that the additional requirement of setting up a bank account will greatly deter uncontrolled gambling activities by letting bettors keep track of their bet spending habits.
Premier Colin Barnett who is ultimately responsible for the proposal’s approval or rejection says he had not yet seen it but nonetheless expressed his view that such a sensitive issue will normally require the state’s cabinet approval.
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