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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2003 Week 14 Hansard (10 December) . . Page.. 5177 ..

MS DUNDAS (continuing):

All that being said, I will support this bill in principle. I have some reservations about supporting it as, once again, we are dealing with a piecemeal approach to the issue of gambling regulation. I have said that I believe this bill would not be necessary if the government demonstrated that it was not being influenced and was effectively regulating the ACT poker machine industry. However, at the moment, it is not.

I would also point out that putting restrictions on poker machine revenue is not new in the ACT. We already have compulsory community contributions that are strictly codified by the commission. We have an existing restriction that means political donations must be matched by additional community contributions. The fact that the Labor Party wishes to remove these restrictions is evidence to support the perception that Labor is more interested in poker machines as a revenue source than in preventing problem gambling.

While I support this bill in principle, I did circulate some amendments earlier today, as I do have some concerns with the way Mrs Cross' bill stands. The amendments would close some loopholes that I think were left in Mrs Cross' bill. The bill, as it stands, would allow donations to candidates, independents or ballot groups, but not political parties. While it prevents donations of money, it does not prevent donations in kind. My amendments move to plug those holes.

The bill also only refers to clubs with poker machine licences, not other licensees. My amendments would remove any references to clubs-to take the bill away from this anti-club idea that seems to exist-and simply refer to poker machine licensees, to bring in the hotels who have poker machine licenses and the taverns, if they ever get their class B machines.

Mr Quinlan: But not Lion Nathan or Fosters, who supply them.

Mr Corbell: Or the Australian Casino Association, the Australian Hotels Association or TabCorp.

MS DUNDAS: Finally, my amendments would make it clear that clubs are only prevented from using their net gaming revenue to make political donations.

Mr Corbell: Or Publishing and Broadcasting Ltd and Kerry Packer.

While the Treasurer and the Minister for Planning are yelling at me, I want to repeat that because I think it is very important: my amendments would make it clear that clubs are only prevented from using their net gaming revenue to make political donations. Under my amendments, if licensees donate all their gaming revenue as approved community contributions, they can use their other resources and their other revenues to donate to political parties.

My concern is the gaming revenue. Clubs should be free to use the revenue that they are making from selling their counter meals, from all their residential properties and all their other revenue as they see fit, but gaming revenue is the issue we should be looking at. What is happening with the money that is being poured into our poker machines has to be addressed.

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