Qld casino law offers lifeline to Star

Star Entertainment could reform its operations in time to cut the ribbon on its $3.6 billion Brisbane casino and resort under proposed state laws.

The Queensland government found the gaming giant unfit to hold a licence last week in response to a scathing report after an inquiry led by former judge Robert Gotterson.

He wrote that the ASX-listed casino operator neglected its anti-money laundering and responsible gaming duties and deliberately misled regulators in pursuit of profit.

Regulators will issue Star with a show-cause notice in coming weeks, putting the future of its $3.6 million Queen’s Wharf Brisbane casino and resort in doubt.

Attorney-General Shannon Fentiman has proposed a last-minute change to an existing bill that could allow Star to rehabilitate itself in time to open the development next year.

The amendment would allow her to appoint a special manager to run a casino when an operator is found unfit to hold a licence.

A special manager would help draw up plans to “potentially remediate a casino licensee back to suitability”, which will be approved by the minister.

“The special manager would be required to report periodically to the government on the special manager’s operations and be required to report on the remediation of a casino licensee or operator and that entity’s progress towards suitability in accordance with a remediation plan,” Ms Fentimen told parliament on Thursday.

The attorney-general has also proposed changes to neutralise compensation claims from casinos relating to regulatory actions against them.

She said the changes were in line with Gotterson’s recommendation to ensure the government was free to “impose reasonable controls” on venues.

“The state must be able to adjust those controls as circumstances demand and in order to protect the public interest,” Ms Fentiman said.

The maximum penalty for legal breaches will also be raised to $100 million, from $50 million in the original bill.

However, the government will delay the enactment of other Gotterson recommendations until 2023.

Those include making casino operators comply with a safe gambling code of conduct, undergoing a periodic review with powers to compel witnesses and evidence and paying a new tax to fund their own regulation.

The industry won’t have to observe police bans on patrons in other states until next year.

Ms Fentiman said other future amendments will force gamblers to use cards linked to their personal identification and pre-set their own loss limits.

Time limits would also be imposed on gambling and all transactions of up to $1000 will have to be cashless, she said.

Shadow attorney-general Tim Nicholls slammed the proposed changes as “half-baked” and warned they would not be probed by a parliamentary committee.

“It is self-evidently half-baked because we will now be discussing 27 pages of amendments to an amending bill that was introduced in May,” he told parliament.

“It is half-baked because in its rush to be seen to be doing something, the government did not consider it would have to do more.”

The proposed laws obligate operators to self-report legal breaches and hand over information to regulators.

A cross-border recognition scheme for charitable fundraising and extending New Year’s Eve trading hours for venues are also part of the proposed laws.