THE GAMING BILL.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLVII, Issue 14530, 18 November 1910, Page 6

THE GAMING BILL.

i' v: -, : •• . { AMENDED BY UPPER HOUSE. ——— : '-y I IMPORTANT ALTERATIONS. EIGHT RACES REINSTATED. [JIT TELEGRAPH,PRESS ASSOCIATION.] Wellington, Thursday. In the Legislative Council this aft-ernpon the Gaming Act Amendment Bill was considered in committee. On the motion of tho Attorney-General (Dr. Findlav) an amendment was introduced to make the whole Act come into operation on January 1 next- instead of on the passing of the Act. Considerable changes were made in clause 2, which prescribes penalties for street betting. Dr. Findlay explained that the object of the amendments was to spread the net as widely as possible. Sub-clause- 2 of clause 2, dealing with penalties for street betting, was eliminated, and the following substituted :— (2) " Every bookmaker who bet in any street or on any racecourse or in any public place, as defined by section 2 of the principal Act, or within the view or hearing of any person in or on any such street, racecourse, or public place, commits an offence, and is liable, on summary conviction, to a fine not less than £20, and not exceeding £100, for a first offence, and to the like fine or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding three months for a second or any subsequent offence against this section, whether of the same or of & different kind. . „ (4) In this section the term "betting and "bet" includes the Act of any person in betting, wagering, offering or agreeing to bet or wager, paying, receiving or settling j any bet or wager, or offering or agreeing to pay, receive or settle any bet or wager, whether on his own behalf or on behalf of anv other person." (5) "In this section the term (street) means (a) any public road, street or thoroughfare, and any road, lane, street, footway or passage, whether a thoroughfare or not and whether public or not; and (b) any enclosed or unenclosed land (not being a j building or a racecourse on which a race meeting in being held) in any city or | borough." Clause 4, providing that clubs are to prevent bookmakers from plying their calling on racecourses, was amended by the excision of sub-clause 2 (enabling a constable to remove from a racecourse any person who ha» committed a breach of clause 2) and the substitution of the following subclause:—(3) "In this section the term ' license' means a license to use the totalisator under the principal Act, or a license granted under the Race Meetings Act, 1909." (4) " Any person who on any racecourse acts in breach of section 2 of this Act, and who after being warned by any agent or servant of the racing club having the use or control of that racecourse, or by any constable, does not desist from so acting, may be forthwith removed from. the course by any such agent or servant or by any constable"; (5) "any person so removed shall not on the day of " such removal re-enter the course, and if he does so re-enter, he may without, warrant, be arrested by any constable and taken before a magistrate or any-two justices and shall be • liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £50, . or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding one month "; (6) " this section shall extend and apply to every racecourse whether it is or is not in the occupation of the racing dub having the use or control • thereof, - and whether it is or is not subject ' to any right of public use or entry, but nothing in this section shall be so construed as to limit or take away pie right of any racing club to exclude or remove any person from any racecourse of which that club is the occupier, and which is free from any right of public use or entry. At clause 5 (the Governor may appoint a Commission to determine the number of licenses to be issued during, the year), the Hon. J. Bigg (Wellington) took strong exception to the clause, as it would, he declared, throw the whole power into the haads of metropolitan clubs. He moved to strike out the first five words with the object of killing the clause. Dr. Findlay urged that the Council ■ should pass the section on the assumption ' that the Commission would be composed of proper persons. : The amendment was defeated by 14 votes to 13. * The Attorney-General moved to strike out sub-clause 2 of clause 5 giving preference in the matter of licenses to those clubs which use the totalisator at one meeting only in any year. The Hon. J. Bigg moved a prior amendment to strike put the words "at one meeting" and substitute the words "one day." This, he explained, would give preference to 20 clubs only. If the subclause were struck out altogether the passage of the bill through the House would : be jeopardised. "■ ::■■ ■■/. "" v ■ The clause 'was deleted by 22 votes to ; 10. ri; ;. :;; The Council adjourned at 5.30 p.m. j When the Council resumed in the even- , ing, the Bill was further considered. ' ' Clause 5, as amended, was passed. £ On : the motion of Dr. Findlay, subsec- } tion 1 of clause 6 (fixing the duration of race meetings) waa struck out, At subsection 2 ("not mora than seven ( races shall be run on any one day at any j. race meeting"), the Hon. 0. Samuel • (Taffanaki), moved that "eight I '' be substi- ' tuted for ''seven." . • • After -considerable . discussion the pro- ( posal was agreed to. ( The following new subclauses, were in- ] serted on the motion of Dr. Findlay :— If any race is run in breach of this sec- i tion, every member, officer, agent, or ser- , vaofc of the racing club having control of , that race meeting shall, unless he proves that he was not a consenting party to that breach, be guilty of an offence punishable -on summary conviction by a fine not exceeding £50. A new clause, 4a, was inserted providing that every license issued in respect of any year after June 31, 1911, shall be issued in respect of a single race meeting, and shall specify the number of days on which the totalisator may be used at that meeting. The aggregate number of days on which the totalisat-or may be used in the Dominion in any year shall not exceed J 250, and the number of days the totalisa- ( tor may be used at any . one meeting shall ( iofc exceed four. A four days' race meet- ( ing, at which the totalisator is used shall { aot extend. over eight consecutive days, ; i three days' meeting shall not extend „ Dver six days, and a two days' meeting shall not extend over four days. A pro- v /iso gives authority to extend the number 8 >f day& where inclement weather, or any i extraordinary circumstances compels the 3 :lub to postpone the meeting to a later » flay. The Governor is empowered to • make regulations as to the grant of Wd- as to the conditions on 0 ftegl they may be issued. - o (Canterbury) 'j moved a. new clause to make provision B i;-;- v. : ;- - ?. _ , ' ■ ' f W';.

that street betting apply to licensed pre mises, his object being to prevent bettinj in hotels. After some discussion, the motion wa withdrawn, and _ the _ Attorney-Genera inserted a provision in'clause 2 makinj * betting on licensed premises illegal. The Bill was reported as amended, reac t a third time, and passed. THE MEASURE IN DANGER 1 ■ —-— BETTING IN A BUILDING. [BY TELEGRAPH. SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT.' I ■ Wellington, Thursday. n-n h f nn , len^ ; nts made in tho Gamine iiill by the Legislative Council to-day art such as may make it very probable thai i the Bill will be killed. For instance, the - Council has struck out the proviso inserted in the House instructing the comI nussioners to give preference in the issue of totalisator permits to one day (country' clubs. Then again the Council vitally .al--1 tered another provision that had caused l a great deal of discussion in the House. This is the provision that limited the j number of races to be run in any one day to seven, which the Council has altered tc eight. A considerable amount of discussion took - place on the question as to whether bet- - ting in a building was illegal. Dr. Findlav explained that there was nothing in our law at the present time to make betting in a private office or a private room ' illegal so long as 6uch room or office did not become a resort for betting. He also ' explained that the Bill was not a measure ; abolishing the calling of the bookmaker. , AH it sought to do was to prevent the , bookmaker from plying his trade in a pub- ' lie place or quasi public place. That was 1 as far as they could go at present. Thia ' is regarded as very important as coming ■ from the Attorney-General. The division on the Hon. O. Samuel's amendment to allow eight races on one day was as follows :—For the amendment : (13) Messrs. Callan, Rigg, Jenkinson, Stevens, Loughnan, McLean, Ormond, Kelly, Thompson, grain, McGowan, Sinclair, Samuel. Against the amendment : (12) Dr. Findlay and Messrs. Luke, Paul, Barr, Jones, Beehan, W. C. Smith, G. J. Smith, Baldey, Collins, Anstey, Harris. After this division, the Attorney-Gen-eral said he did not know whether progress should not be reported. Hon. 0. Samuel: Let us finish this Bill. Dr. Findlay : I don't know whether it is worth while, in view of the amendment that has been carried and what took place in the House. The Bill eventually got through committee, and was read a third time.