[Greens-Media] Tas Greens_Treasurer Must Commit to Releasing Gaming Commission Review_K Booth MP

[greens at parliament.tas.gov.au]

COMMUNITY DESERVES TO KNOW ASSESSMENT OF INDEPENDENT GAMBLING IMPACT
STUDY

Treasurer Must Commit to Releasing Gaming Commission Review

Kim Booth MP
Greens Shadow Gaming Spokesperson

Wednesday, 12 November 2008
Contact: State Parliamentary Offices of the Tasmanian Greens, (03) 6233
8300

www.tas.greens.org.au


The Tasmanian Greens today called on Treasurer Michael Aird to commit to
the full public release of the Tasmanian Gaming Commission (TGC) review
of the Social and Economic Impact Study into Gambling in Tasmania which
was conducted by the South Australian Centre for Economic Studies
(SACES), and released in July this year. 

Greens Shadow Gaming spokesperson Kim Booth MP cautioned the Bartlett
government against resorting to the regular Labor excuse of
Cabinet-in-Confidence to justify withholding any or all of the TGC
review from the Tasmanian community, which is currently bearing the
negative impacts of poker machine addictions.

Mr Booth also called on Treasurer Aird to reveal when the TGC review was
first received by his office, given that yesterday's announcement from
the Treasurer very carefully avoided naming the actual date that the
review was received.

"The community have been waiting for months for the TGC review of the
independent Gambling Impact Study Report to be conducted and released,
as Labor have used the TGC review as an excuse to delay announcing
whether, and to what extent, they intend to implement the SACES Report's
recommendations," Mr Booth said. 

"The SACES study revealed that the overall social impact of gambling in
Tasmania is negative and that there is no net increase in employment,
investment or tourism activity as a result of gambling - it is crucial
that the people affected by this insidious practice, the Tasmanian
community, can now gain full access to the TGC review of the SACES
Report especially if it is going to form the basis of the government's
formal response to that study."

"The Treasurer's announcement yesterday was quite odd - he carefully
failed to reveal when his office first received the TGC review, which
will now go to Cabinet, and then he promised to table the SACES study in
Parliament although it was publicly released in July - just what is
going on behind the scenes here?"

"Sowing confusion in people's minds is a poor substitute for
accountability and responsibility." 

Mr Booth successfully moved to table the two-volumed SACES report in the
House of Assembly this morning.




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