Page 3527 - Week 12 - Thursday, 20 September 1990
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recommendations of the select committee that looked at the casino issue. I support Dr Kinloch's statements and, as he well knows, there are workers in this community, Mark Dickerson and others, to whom we legal practitioners and others have often sent compulsive gamblers, particularly compulsive gaming machine gamblers. I personally support that recommendation that came from the Humphries committee. Be that as it may, I do not believe you are going to see a breakout of $1 and $2 machines throughout the club circuit. I think that Mr Wood's comments are an appropriate enjoinder for the Government to look very carefully at these issues.
Mr Wood also asked whether the law set a regulated ratio of different denomination machines in various clubs. My advice is that no fixed minimum ratio is there but the Gaming and Liquor Authority, as it presently is, has the authority to determine the denomination and the spread of machines. So, clearly, this would be a decision that governments, judging on comments here in the chamber, should take an interest in and I will take an interest in it. As the Assembly is aware, we are moving to abolish GALA in its present form and I will speak to the foreshadowed amendment in that context, not that we disagree in principle with the proposal. I will speak about some technical problems and social problems about it at the stage when the Leader of the Opposition moves her amendment.
Finally, Mr Speaker, there have been a few other things thrown up at us, not by the Opposition but outside, and I think I should take the opportunity to put them on the record. ACT gaming machine levy rates are only now coming up to New South Wales levels after 15 years. The rate proposed for Queensland currently is 1.6 times the new ACT rate. Certainly, comparisons with New South Wales should not be taken too far. We have no policy, and no covert policy, I stress, of following any of the New South Wales directions. Our new scale is tax and socially progressive and makes the larger clubs, the wealthy clubs, pay more. I believe the increase is moderate. The other issues, of course, will be addressed by the Licensed Clubs Association and the smaller clubs. I wrote to all 67 clubs on budget day outlining our proposed changes. I believe that it is in the interests of the club industry for the voice of the smaller clubs to be better heard in these decision making processes, and that is why I believe we need to move carefully with the larger percentage pay-out issue at this stage.
Question resolved in the affirmative.
Bill agreed to in principle.
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