Australia Continues to restrict online Gambling
Gambling News - 01st Jul 2010
Australia is refusing to cancel the online casino gambling ban that restricts its citizens from accessing online gambling sites. The Australian Government has been pressured to change its current stance, however it has remained firm on the issue.
Policy advisors believe that the Government should amend their policy and they have put pressure on the Government to begin working towards the regulation of the online gambling industry in place of the current policy of prohibition.
Currently, the country-wide ban on online gambling has been in effect for eight years. The 2001 Interactive Gambling Act made it illegal for Australian residents to gamble online and the Productivity Commission has requested that the Government strike down the law.
The Australian Government is refusing to budge on its policy. The Communications Minister, Stephen Conroy, stated on behalf of the Government and former Australian Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd: "We are not convinced that liberalizing online gaming would have benefits for the Australian community which would outweigh the risks of online gambling."
Conroy's statement continued on that the Australian Government plans to work with other nations, such as the USA, in order to form global regulations that will better serve the interests of each country and provide an international framework and regulations that online casino operators will be expected to work within.
The opposing opinion disagrees with this assessment. It has suggested to the Government that by legalizing online gambling, the economy could benefit through the creation of new jobs for local residents and it would in fact help to fund organizations that could be created to help problem gamblers and reduce the negative effects of gambling.
The Productivity Commission stated: "the long run consequence of prohibition may be higher problem gambling risks and a loss of commercial opportunities and tax revenue in Australia."
