MORE OR LESS GAMBLING: VIEW OF PRESBYTERIANS

Greymouth Evening Star, 28 February 1949, Page 4

MORE OR LESS GAMBLING: VIEW OF PRESBYTERIANS

(P.A.) DUNEDIN, This Day. The desire of the Presbyterian Church of New Zealand for the eradication of illegal gambling, and the belief that there could be a clean-up of bookmaking now, were expressed today by the convener of the public questions committee of the Church, the Rev J. S. Somerville, of Wellington, in a statement on the gaming referendum released here. There was much in the public mind over the issues involved in the referendum, Mr Somerville said. “The propaganda of the Racing and Trotting Conferences has led people to believe that the issue is simply between legal off-course betting _ and illegal off-course betting. The issue is rather between more or less gambling, between upholding the law and confining betting to the racecourse on the one hand and a widespread increase in betting all over the country on the other.

“We want all gambling reduced to a reasonable minimum. We particularly want illegal gambling eradicated. We are on the side of law and order. We consider that people who disregard the law now are little likely to regard or respect it when a new law is made to suit them. If, however, the law is really at stake, good faith could be shown by a clean-up of bookmaking now. “There is no unholy alliance between the churches and the bookmakers. If the proposal is defeated, we believe that the Government will have a mandate to eradicate the bookmaker,” Mr Somerville concluded.