New South Wales-based RSL and leagues clubs have failed to stay on the same side with their industry body and negotiate to try out an alternative to the mandatory gaming card that has been proposed by the state government.
The effort that is being made by the Returned and Services League of Australia (RSL) and Services Clubs Association and Leagues Clubs Australia seeks to see a trial of cashless technology implemented in a number of the biggest clubs in NSW to help the authorities tackle rising gambling addiction and money laundering rates. The organisations are separate from the ClubsNSW.
According to supporters of the gambling reform, cashless options could transform the state’s gambling sector, even if a compulsory gambling card is not officially implemented. However, they have questioned the minimum five-year timeframe that the RSL and leagues clubs have suggested.
One of the campaigners of the Alliance for Gambling Reform, Dr Kate da Costa, has explained that moving to a cashless economy could be the end of dangerous money laundering. However, she noted that such a system would only work in case it is connected to the central systems of the government. As Dr Da Costa commented for The Guardian Australia, the system should be designed well, otherwise, it would be a disaster.
The System Needs to Be Well Designed to Prevent Problem Gambling, Campaigners Say
As previously reported, the original proposal for a mandatory gaming card of the NSW government would make sure players would be required to purchase such a card and pre-load a certain amount of money in it before they are allowed to place bets.
The RSL and leagues clubs have been considering an alternative to this proposal, which would involve the use of a digital wallet that customers would be able to install on their phones and then use it to pay for their gambling. The software implemented in the digital wallet would contain data about customers’ identities and would be linked to the bank account of each user. This would allow the system to record the transaction, with a preliminary check against a problem gamblers’ database of the government set to be done.
The trial proposal was welcomed by Victor Dominello, the customer service minister of New South Wales. In his opinion, the proposal came to show the authorities that the sector was not being irresponsible and wants to help in tackling problem gambling and money laundering rates in the state. According to Mr Dominello, such a trial would provide legislators with the chance to get the technology and settings right and would help the state step into a world that is getting more digitalised and cashless.
Apart from links to customer’s identity and bank account, the proposed alternative to mandatory cashless cards would have to provide appropriate gambling-related harm minimisation protections. In any case, these are not “overnight” changes but, if done right, they are really able to change the appearance of the sector, according to its supporters.
- Author
Daniel Williams
