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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2002 Week 4 Hansard (11 April) . . Page.. 973 ..

MR QUINLAN (continuing):

Mr Speaker, relevant sporting bodies, such as ACTSport, Womensport ACT and the Sport and Recreation Council, as well as ClubsACT, were invited to comment on this proposal. ACTSport has indicated that it is extremely supportive of this initiative, while ClubsACT also responded in support of the proposal. At this time, Womensport ACT and the Sport and Recreation Council have yet to respond; however, all relevant sporting clubs and ClubsACT will again be invited to comment and any input received will be incorporated into the development of detailed ministerial guidelines which will be prepared following the passage of the bill through the Assembly.

Mr Speaker, ministerial guidelines are required under the Gaming Machine Act to assist clubs in determining whether their donations are eligible community contributions for the purposes of the act and to ensure that those sporting organisations and categories of individuals that may benefit from this proposal are identified and the guidelines are structured accordingly. I commend the Gaming Machine (Women's Sport) Amendment Bill 2002 to the Assembly.

Debate (on motion by Mr Humphries ) adjourned to the next sitting.

Gaming Machine (Cap) Amendment Bill 2002

Mr Quinlan, pursuant to notice, presented the bill and its explanatory memorandum.

Title read by Clerk.

MR QUINLAN (Treasurer, Minister for Economic Development, Business and Tourism, Minister for Sport, Racing and Gaming and Minister for Police, Emergency Services and Corrections) (10.40): I move:

Mr Speaker, the Gaming Machine (Cap) Amendment Bill 2002 is a very simple piece of legislation that extends the current restrictions on the number of gaming machines that can be licensed in the territory. Currently, the Gaming Machine Act 1987 restricts the number of gaming machines in the territory to a maximum of 5,200. However, this restriction only applies up to 30 June 2002. This government is committed to ensuring that gambling is not allowed to proliferate in the territory unfettered. We are committed to encouraging harm-minimisation measures in relation to all forms of gambling, particularly with gaming machines.

The ACT Gambling and Racing Commission is currently conducting a comprehensive review of the Gaming Machine Act 1987 to ensure that it meets community and regulatory needs. This review is very detailed and will take the best part of this year to finalise. There has already been extensive community consultation as part of the review and more will follow.

I wish to emphasise that, as part of the review, the commission will be addressing the long-term question of the number of gaming machines that should be licensed in the territory. At the end of the review, the Assembly will be presented with a properly

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