The minister responsible for the expansion of online gaming in Alberta had some harsh words for an offshore gaming operator at a Rotary meeting in St. Albert this week.
St. Albert-Morinville MLA Dale Nally, who serves as the Minister of Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction and is the minister responsible for Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis, spoke to the St. Albert Rotary Club on Friday Nov. 22.
Nally updated Rotarians on bills he is currently shepherding through the Alberta legislature, including amendments to the Condominium Property Act, the Prompt Payment and Construction Lien Act and the Freedom of Information Act.
Bill 30 will create a tribunal dispute mechanism for condominium owners to use in lieu of having to go to court to settle disputes.
The bill will also extend the province’s prompt payment legislation, which requires project owners to pay contractors within 28 calendar days of receiving an invoice, to apply to provincial government construction as well.
Nally also introduced Bill 34, the modernization of the province’s Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, which was first introduced 30 years ago, in the Legislature this fall.
Nally said the changes, which make communication between political staff and members of the cabinet exempt from FOI requests, are supported by the Supreme Court and are consistent with other levels of government.
“FOIP has always about providing access to government documents, not political conversations,” said Nally.
Alberta’s privacy commissioner has raised concerns about the changes to FOIP.
Nally also indicated the government’s red tape reduction initiatives are going well, saying that they have saved $2.8 billion for businesses.
Nally said the government is now working on automatic approvals for permits on “simple” issues, though he did not provide examples.
Nally said more complex permits would also have a “shot clock” which would see them automatically approved if not handled within a certain time frame.
“If you’re going to say no, you should be able to say no in six to 12 months,” said Nally.
Rotarians asked Nally about the potential expansion of regulated online gaming in Alberta and its potential effect on charities receiving funds from current bricks-and-mortar casinos.
Nally said his mandate from the premier was to make online gaming options safer and more responsible, noting “there’s not a lot of money in it” for the government.
Nally said he couldn’t say what amounts or percentages of revenue from expanded online gaming would go to Indigenous groups, charities and others who currently get money from “land-based” casinos, but said it would not be as much, adding that in-person gaming revenues are already being “cannibalized” by existing online gaming.
Nally noted that Bet365, which he said represents about half of the province’s estimated online gaming market today, is interested in entering the province’s new regulated space.
The MLA had harsh words for another online gaming operator, Bodog.
“They’re pretty repugnant,” Nally said. “They have no desire to be legal, they have no desire to become regulated. They exist offshore, their servers are offshore, even the Americans can’t arrest them. These guys will always operate in the black market, they have no desire to behave, and they will allow you to wager yourself into bankruptcy.
“We want to put them out of business by having responsible, legal, regulated gambling in place.”
