Page 2539 - Week 08 - Thursday, 19 August 1993
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then commit that cash to gaming machines. This causes me some concern, Madam Speaker. While being conscious of the need for clubs to provide services to members, we also need to consider the possible social consequences for club members and their families, if significant amounts of money are then spent on gaming machines, to that person and that family's potential disadvantage in the longer term.
In conclusion, Madam Speaker, I would like to urge the Chief Minister to review the measures contained in the Gaming Machine (Amendment) Bill and the Taxation (Administration) (Amendment) Bill in about 12 months' time - to review many of these new procedures which will be implemented - to enable people to participate more fully in gaming machine linked jackpots and such like. I believe that that review would be timely, and it would certainly resolve the question of whether some of the provisions in the Bill at the moment are somewhat onerous.
MS FOLLETT (Chief Minister and Treasurer) (4.10), in reply: Madam Speaker, I would like to thank Ms Szuty and Mr Kaine for their contributions to this debate. I will deal in some detail with their comments. First of all, Ms Szuty raised the issue of the definition of "credit" in this Bill. I think it might come as news to Ms Szuty that a great many clubs these days have automatic teller machines on the premises from which you can withdraw money and squander it in any way you wish. The case that Ms Szuty has alluded to, of people getting a cash advance on their Bankcard, is really no different from that. If we were to review that whole situation, then that would be a very different question from the one that we are dealing with in this Bill.
Madam Speaker, members will recall that yesterday, in the course of a quite long statement on this Bill, Mr Kaine accused me of having wasted the Assembly's time by bringing forward a deficient Bill. For the record, I would like to state that this is not a deficient Bill. I believe that a great deal of Mr Kaine's comment was ill informed. Members may, in fact, wish to take issue with the question of Mr Kaine wasting the time of the Assembly as well. Madam Speaker, I am aware that Mr De Domenico, the Deputy Leader of the Opposition, was briefed on this Bill, as was Ms Szuty, some time ago. I can only conclude that there was no communication between Mr De Domenico and Mr Kaine on the matter, for Mr De Domenico did not raise these issues. Madam Speaker, members opposite ought to be the ones to blush.
Mr Kaine: That is a bit of a strange argument - that because you brief somebody else I am supposed to be informed. Come on!
MS FOLLETT: Madam Speaker, I understand the tensions and the problems that exist within the Liberal ranks, but I think they should have talked to each other on this matter. I will address the issues that Mr Kaine raised. As I say, I believe that the Bill is a good Bill and is drafted in keeping with modern drafting practice and in a way that is both competent and appropriate.
Madam Speaker, Mr Kaine's first point was in relation to clause 9 and the definition of "defined number". The definition does not refer to the number of stopping positions raised to the power of the number of reels, as suggested by Mr Kaine, simply because there are machines available which do not have the same number of stopping positions on each reel. I think Mr Kaine's alternative definition would simply not work. Mr Kaine suggested that clause 20 does not
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