Clause 7 - Casino
Gambling Bill
11:00 am
Mr Clive Efford (Eltham, Labour)
I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman. I was not aware of that requirement, but I support it. Identification is important, particularly when large stakes are involved. It will also help to deal with money laundering to some degree.
We must set high standards throughout the Bill. When dealing with legislation on an issue such as gambling, the lowest common denominator should cause us most concern. We should think about the people who will adopt the sharpest practices, about those who will encourage people to drink and over-indulge in gambling, and about those who will treat their work forces in a way that we would not want any employer to treat their employees. Those people are present in the gambling industry and we have to legislate for that. That is why the clause is so important.
I await with interest the final proposals from the Government, because in determining where the eight casinos are located they will need to remove their responsibility for making Hobson's choice about which region should have one. There has to be some mechanism, and some logic, for deciding where those casinos go, and the Government have a duty, having placed a limit on the numbers, to come up with that mechanism.