Bay of Plenty Times THURSDAY, MAY 2, 1946 THE GAMING INQUIRY

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume LXXIV, Issue 14049, 2 May 1946, Page 2

Bay of Plenty Times THURSDAY, MAY 2, 1946 THE GAMING INQUIRY

In a Gazette notice issued this week the personnel and the order of reference of the Royal Coinmission to inquire into and repoit upon gaming and racing in the Dominion were announced. Ihe chairman of the commission will be the Hon. Mr Justice Finlay and associated with him will be Mr W. H. Freeman, S.M., and the Under? Secretary for Internal Affairs (Mr J. W. A. Heenan), all men well qualified" to undertake the task. The order of reference is a fairly wide one and makes provision for a most exhaustive inquiry. Among other things, the commission is to inquire into the existing law relating to gaming, the present administration and control of practices relating to racing, and, generally, all other matters connected with gaming and racing; and to examine and report upon proposals that may be made for amending the law, administration and control of these matters in New Zealand in the public interest; and also to make such proposals as it thinks fit. It cannot be denied that the need for such a commission of inquiry is long overdue. Horse racing and gambling have long ago become part of our national life. Gambling can never be suppressed. It is growing year by year, a fact which has been well demonstrated'this year by the enormous increase in the amount of money passing through the totalisators at practically every race meeting in the country, and such being the case, steps must be taken to adequately control it. This is the task which has been placed in the hands of the Royal Commission and there is no doubt that it will have a great deal of evidence and many submissions to sift out before it makes its report to the Governor-General which is reowired to be made not later than August 31 of this year. There are, of course, many unsatisfactory features ot gaming in New Zealand, but, perhaps the greatest anomaly is the position with regard to bookmakers, a position which must be faced up to and rectified. All know that bookmaking in this country is against the law, but this has never prevented bookmakers from operating, ami operating'in a way just about as open as it could possibly be. They are, after all, simply surviving what has become a demand, and a very great demand at that, and in spite of the heavv sentences imposed by some of our courts on persons convicted of bookmaking, these activities have gone on just the same. It has been estimated, in fact, that more money actually passes through the bookmakers’ hands in this country than is handled by the totalisators and it is not hard to imagine that such is the case. And vet the offence is condoned by some of our State departments. For instance bookmakers appear to have no trouble in using the public services for the carrying on of their businesses while the Land and ‘lncome Tax Department insists that they should submit tax returns relating to their incomes. It is quite obvious that such a state of affairs should not be allowed to continue, and the Royal Commission will therefore be welcomed by all. . .