GAMING COMMISSION

Evening Star, Issue 25926, 18 October 1946, Page 4

GAMING COMMISSION

PRELIMINARY SITTING NEXT MONTH WIDE SCOPE OF INQUIRY (Special.) WELLINGTON, Oct. 17. The Iloyal Commission on the Dominion’s gaming laws is expected to have a preliminary meeting in Auckland early in November. It is understood that the purpose of this meeting is to consider the order of reference and to decide when public sittings of the commission will be held. In view of the intervention of the holiday season, it appears that these sittings cannot be started until early in February. The commission comprises Mr Justice Finlay (chairman), Mr W. H. Freeman, S.M., and Mr J. W. Heenan, Under-Secretary of the Department of Internal Affairs. It has been unable to start its work earlier through the judiciary being short-handed. Mr Justice Northcroft is in Japan in connection with the trial of Japanese war prisoners, and Mr Justice Smith up until recently has been engaged as chairman of the Royal Commission which investigated the Dominion’s licensing laws. At the present time the Gaming Commission has until the end of March to submit its report. This, however, is no hard-and-fast arrangement, and, as in the case of other commissions, it no doubt will be necessary for the time to be extended. It is common knowledge that the commission is likely to have a ; wide range of representations made to it on all phases of the Gaming Act. Study of the Letters Patent appointing the commission as published in the Gazette should clear away a great deal of misunderstanding that exists in some quarters that the scope of the commission’s inquiry is merely confined to the. question of racing and betting on racing. In point of fact, the whole of the Gaming Act is thrown open for investigation. No indication has. yet been given, as to the places in which the commission is likely to sit to carry out its investigation, but it is expected that there will be' an announcement on this matter after the preliminary meeting in Auckland. Even, though the commission’s inquiry. will cover a wide range, it is considered most unlikely it will need anything like the time that was required by the Licensing Commission. It has already been announced that Mr A. T. Donnelly, of Christchurch, will represent the New Zealand Racing Conference as senior counsel at commission proceedings. When the first announcement waß made of the setting up : of the commission, Mr H. F. O’Leary was retained by the conference, but when Mr O’Leary was appointed Chief Justice it was necessary to select another counsel. Other prominent counsel will be engaged. It is expected that the New Zealand Trotting Association, the ■ New Zealand Sportsmen’s Association, and dog racing, coursing and other organisations will also be represented, as Well as anti-gambling interests.