Australia to Maintain Stand against Online Poker

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The Australian Government has been advised by the Productivity Commission to relax its ban on online poker and to begin to lift its 8 year old law against online gaming. The Government has rejected the recommendations that were set out by their independent advisory body.

The 2010 Productivity Commission report was released last week and it called for the abolishment of the Interactive Gambling Act of 2001, as a way to liberalize the laws against online poker in Australia.

The report stated that the "Australian Government should repeal the Interactive Gambling Act and, in consultation with state and territory governments, should initiate a process for the managed liberalization of online gaming."

The report's arguments for widespread changes in the area of online gaming were met with resistance from the government. Stephen Conroy, the Communications Minister for former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, rejected the recommendations on behalf of the Labor Government.

Conroy stated that "we are not convinced that liberalizing online gaming would have benefits for the Australian community which would outweigh the risks of an increased incidence of problem gambling, particularly with the rapid changes in technology."

It has been reported by a Brisbane-based newspaper, The Courier-Mail that the Australian Government is interested in speaking with other countries, such as the US, about global regulations.

According to the Australian Productivity Commission report, "the long-run consequences of prohibition may be higher problem gambling risks and a loss of commercial opportunities and tax revenue in Australia." It continued: "consequently, a gradual approach to managed liberalization that commenced with the likely safest form of online gambling, poker card games, would seem to be an affective way forward. The effects of this partial liberalization could then be evaluated as could the harm minimization measures in place before any further liberalization was considered." According to the Commission, online gambling in Australia could produce multiple job opportunities and generate substantial tax revenue for the country if managed appropriately.

The Interactive Gambling Act of 2001 was passed over concerns that were expressed by the Australian community about the fears and risks involved in online gambling in terms of social welfare. In addition, with the improvements in technology and the growth of the online gambling industry, there were fears about the ability to properly regulate the industry and collect tax revenue. The aim of the Interactive Gambling Act was to reduce the potentially negative impacts of online gambling.

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