It’s outrageous that Raiders Belconnen now does not have to pay the $120,000 fine which the ACT gambling regulator had imposed for breaking the law in relation to Professor Laurie Brown.
The fact is that Professor Brown lost over $230,000 on poker machines at Raiders Belconnen and the regulator themselves found that this shouldn’t have been allowed to happen.
This makes a complete joke of the current system of regulation when hearings take place behind closed doors and penalties can just get negotiated away.
A paltry donation to charity and a slap on the wrist will do nothing to deter other clubs from breaking the law.
This should be a wake-up call for politicians around the country to remove poker machines from hotels and clubs entirely, or at the very least put in place effective harm minimisation measures on the machines that are out there.
