Parmar Parmjeet: Gambling Amendment Bill (No 2) — Third ReadingText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeParmar Parmjeet: Gambling Amendment Bill (No 2) — Third Reading[Sitting date: 19 February 2015. Volume:703;Page:1810. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]Dr PARMJEET PARMAR (National):Thank you for the opportunity to speak on the Gambling Amendment Bill (No 2) in its third reading. I am not on the Government Administration Committee so it is a real privilege to be able to speak on this bill. As we have heard the Gambling Act 2003 took effect on 1 July 2004. As it happens with time we learn observe and bring reforms. This has happened time and time again and it is happening to this Act which brought major reforms to the gambling sector. It is very important that the intent of the Act is maintained. The amendments in the bill are consistent with the intent of the Act which is to minimise harm from gambling.Before I get into any technical aspects I would like to highlight that National is aware of issues around gambling and our interest is to reduce the harm that can be caused by gambling. We also keep in mind that we work on making sure that returns to the community are taken full advantage of for the betterment of our communities. The problem gambling levy is currently raising $55 million over 3 years to fund services and minimise the harm caused in communities. Various organisations use this money as a source of funding for their services which are provided to the wider community. They are required to be accountable according to this bill for the grant or funding that is awarded to them from gambling societies. The amendments to the Act will make sure that the regulatory framework operates as it is supposed to and that gambling operators know their obligations. The behaviour of some class 4 gambling societies has been disappointing. There have been efforts put in place to make progress in this area. There has been a number of prosecutions and a clear message has been sent to the sector.I believe in personal responsibility and realise that the gambling policy is always a balancing act for the Government because there are some people who know how to engage in activities that are kept strictly at a social and leisurely level but then there is a group that can be prone to become addicted and some who just get into gambling with the hope—or shall we say false hope—of winning something big. It depends very much on the individual. I have seen families who gamble on occasion and understand the separation that it means in their lives while other families have struggled with addiction hence leading to rifts in families and financial situations. Once again the situation is very subjective to the individual.Overall if we look at the number of pokie machines their number has actually decreased significantly since 2003. This number should continue to drop because as per local councils venues with gambling machines that close down cannot be replaced. A major focus for the Government is on ensuring that the Gambling Act 2003 can be properly enforced. These changes are intended to resolve any confusion about meaning and reinforce to the sector how important aspects of the Act work. For example Supplementary Order Paper 454 clarifies the ongoing obligations of gambling societies after they are licensed. With regard to the additional provisions in the Act relating to class 4 gambling which includes all non-casino pokie machines from this at least 37 percent of all net proceeds must be returned to the community.The Government takes problem gambling seriously and our policy on class 4 gambling is to minimise the harm caused while maximising the returns to the community. Harm minimisation is a priority for this Government. The bill has additional harm minimisation regulation-making powers that may offer the opportunity to introduce additional well-targeted interventions in the future—for example regulations could be made to specify minimum standards of content for problem-gambling awareness training for venue staff.Debate interrupted.