From yesterday, all licence applications and renewals are subject to new measures that include trying to restrict profiteering for site operators, and banning staff members from playing machines at their workplace.
Gerald Scanlan, Internal Affairs Department acting general manager of gaming and censorship regulations, said yesterday the increase would double team numbers in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, to a total of about 27 inspectors.
The group budget has also been increased from an annual $7.5 million by $850,000 a year, on a four-year basis. Some 844 groups are licensed to operate the 19,332 poker machines around the country and their gaming machine levies have recently increased 27% from $200 a machine a year, to $254.
When announcing the new conditions late last week, Internal Affairs Minister George Hawkins said gaming machines should not be treated as cash cows, and the new measures would stop any profiteering by pubs or clubs, by attempting to keep fees about $150 per machine per week.
Under present law, charitable not-for-profit societies with gaming machine licences appoint a site operator, such as a pub owner, to run their machines. The money put into the machines returns to the society for distribution to the community and the Government, but the site operator is paid a fee by the society for each of the machines.
Internal Affairs manager of gaming licences Lois Markland said fees had reached unjustifiable amounts in some cases. The department knew of fees of $1000 a week per machine. The new conditions do not cap fees at $150. Instead, conditions set standards for payments and require that any fees higher than $150 be justified.
Mr Scanlan said department officers were "aghast", when they discovered the $1000 payments. In addition, the 844 societies licensed to operate gaming machines would be audited every two years, instead of about once every four years.
Ian Bray, chief executive of New Zealand's largest single gaming machine operator, Pub Charity Inc, said yesterday the "bizarre" new staff ban would be difficult to police.
SOURCE:
Otago Daily Times.
