Allowing bookies to become legal will do nothing to stop black marking gambling and loan sharking, a Commons justice committee has heard..Cabinet in 2016 rejected an identical bill on warnings that public regulators could not compete with private bookies, said Blacklock’s Reporter..“You are never going to eliminate organized crime from that,” testified Chris Lewis, retired commissioner of the Ontario Provincial Police..Bill C-218 , if passed, would repeal an 1892 ban on single event sports betting..“Eliminating a whole pile of organized crime and eliminating people from placing bets they can’t afford and borrowing money to do it and paying unbelievable interest rates, threats of violence, etcetera, does differentiate it,” said Lewis. “.A lot of that will be eliminated, but not all.”.“The big concern I have to share is the impact this proposed change could have on individuals and families, the social costs of gaming,” now-Public Safety Minister Bill Blair said six years ago when a similar bill was rejected..“Illegal bookmakers have lower overhead costs and can offer more favourable betting odds. The vast majority of those who bet with illegal bookmakers would continue to do so. This is because bookmakers extend credit directly to the bettor, unlike the provinces.”.Liberal MP James Maloney (Etobicoke-Lakeshore, Ont.) echoed the worry that provincially-regulated bookmaking could not compete with illegal gamers..“The premise that it happens anyway, that argument can be applied to a whole bunch of different things,” said Maloney..“The reality is you have to temper that with issues like safety, morality and other concerns. That’s really what this is about, because I think you’ll agree with me this law isn’t going to solve the crime problem..“Bad guys will find ways to do bad things. And then on the flip side, you have good guys trying to get into this business because they want to get rid of the bad guys, but their motivation is making money and greed.”.The bill on February 17 passed Second Reading in the Commons by a vote of 303-15..Conservative MP Kevin Waugh (Saskatoon-Grasswood), sponsor of the bill, earlier told the Commons justice committee that match-fixing by modestly-paid Canadian athletes was a worry..In a 2019 submission, the Canadian Football League Players’ Association said the average minimum salary for players was $65,408 with a typical career lasting three seasons due to injury..“There is a common misperception that CFL players are highly paid for the work they do,” wrote the Association..“While a few players are able, through direct negotiation of additional bonuses and benefits with team owners, to receive salaries in excess of $100,000 per year, the vast majority of CFL players earn relatively modest incomes.”.Dave Naylor is the News Editor of the Western Standard.,dnaylor@westernstandardonline.com,.Twitter.com/nobby7694
Allowing bookies to become legal will do nothing to stop black marking gambling and loan sharking, a Commons justice committee has heard..Cabinet in 2016 rejected an identical bill on warnings that public regulators could not compete with private bookies, said Blacklock’s Reporter..“You are never going to eliminate organized crime from that,” testified Chris Lewis, retired commissioner of the Ontario Provincial Police..Bill C-218 , if passed, would repeal an 1892 ban on single event sports betting..“Eliminating a whole pile of organized crime and eliminating people from placing bets they can’t afford and borrowing money to do it and paying unbelievable interest rates, threats of violence, etcetera, does differentiate it,” said Lewis. “.A lot of that will be eliminated, but not all.”.“The big concern I have to share is the impact this proposed change could have on individuals and families, the social costs of gaming,” now-Public Safety Minister Bill Blair said six years ago when a similar bill was rejected..“Illegal bookmakers have lower overhead costs and can offer more favourable betting odds. The vast majority of those who bet with illegal bookmakers would continue to do so. This is because bookmakers extend credit directly to the bettor, unlike the provinces.”.Liberal MP James Maloney (Etobicoke-Lakeshore, Ont.) echoed the worry that provincially-regulated bookmaking could not compete with illegal gamers..“The premise that it happens anyway, that argument can be applied to a whole bunch of different things,” said Maloney..“The reality is you have to temper that with issues like safety, morality and other concerns. That’s really what this is about, because I think you’ll agree with me this law isn’t going to solve the crime problem..“Bad guys will find ways to do bad things. And then on the flip side, you have good guys trying to get into this business because they want to get rid of the bad guys, but their motivation is making money and greed.”.The bill on February 17 passed Second Reading in the Commons by a vote of 303-15..Conservative MP Kevin Waugh (Saskatoon-Grasswood), sponsor of the bill, earlier told the Commons justice committee that match-fixing by modestly-paid Canadian athletes was a worry..In a 2019 submission, the Canadian Football League Players’ Association said the average minimum salary for players was $65,408 with a typical career lasting three seasons due to injury..“There is a common misperception that CFL players are highly paid for the work they do,” wrote the Association..“While a few players are able, through direct negotiation of additional bonuses and benefits with team owners, to receive salaries in excess of $100,000 per year, the vast majority of CFL players earn relatively modest incomes.”.Dave Naylor is the News Editor of the Western Standard.,dnaylor@westernstandardonline.com,.Twitter.com/nobby7694
