The Gaming and Lotteries (Amendment) Bill was a weak Bill because a defaulting licence holder could now decide to negotiate with the Gaming Authority instead of going to prison, Justyne Caruana (PL) said yesterday.

She said the Bill was introducing administrative penalties which would be substituting court procedures. In the case of breach of law, there would now be negotiations between the authority and the licence holder. The court had previously been in a position to impose prison sentences but this amendment would now be eliminating this possibility.

She asked what would happen in recidivism cases. Would the authority consider the fact that the person was committing a crime the second time round? She believed that the proposed amendment was not strong enough to act as a deterrent.

The Bill said that that enforcement measures had to be paid by the licence holder. Dr Caruana hoped that this would not lead to such holders paying to avoid inspections.

An amendment was increasing prison sentences but reducing the minimum fine of €7,000. This could now lead to the court deciding to impose lesser fines.

Dr Caruana said that it was a fact that the gaming industry contributed heavily to the Maltese economy. However, one had to analyse the social impact since it could lead to society paying a high price.

Gaming was on the increase and it was leading to the breakdown of many families. This was a modern type of poverty and it was Parliament’s responsibility to protect the family through all possible means.

She said it was a scientific fact that gambling increased when people were concerned about their future because of economic uncertainty.

Although males were more prone to become addicted to gambling, the phenomenon of coffee mornings affected a large number of women. Dr Caruana said she understood that this was a form of entertainment. However, it was important to keep a limit.

People who gambled often resorted to usury, fraud and other types of criminality. Dr Caruana said that there should be more awareness and harsher penalties for people who perpetrated usury. Furthermore, it was important to regulate the gaming sector and enforce such regulations.

She said that the government should use part of the income from this industry to form campaigns for the prevention and cure of gambling addiction. Education was vital and there should be more awareness on the consequences of this addiction.

Dr Caruana praised organisations such as Oasi and Sedqa which carried out a lot of work to help gambling addicts to kick the habit.