Review of licensee exclusion

Legislation

The Gambling and Racing Control Code of Practice (the Code) is contained in Schedule 1 to the Gambling and Racing Control (Code of Practice) Regulation 2002 (the Regulation).

Section 1.14(1) of the Code states that the licensee of a gambling facility must exclude a person from gambling at the facility if the licensee has reasonable grounds for believing that the welfare of the person, or any of the person’s dependants, is seriously at risk because of the person’s gambling problem or that the person has signed a deed of exclusion. The meaning of “gambling problem” is contained in section 1.2 of the Code.

Section 1.15 of the Code covers the matters to which a licensee must have regard to when deciding whether to exclude a person and that states that the decision to exclude must be reasonable in the circumstances. In making the decision the licensee must consider whether the exclusion is necessary to protect the welfare of the person, or any of the person’s dependants, from risk in relation to the person’s gambling problem and is in the public interest, particularly having regard to the social and economic costs of problem gambling.

If the licensee excludes a person under section 1.14 of the Code, they must provide the person with a notice of exclusion and add their details to the exclusion register maintained by the ACT Gambling and Racing Commission (the Commission).

Section 1.16 of the Code states that a person aggrieved by a licensee’s decision under section 1.14 (Exclusion of people at risk or excluded under deed) may apply, in writing, to the Commission for a review of the decision.

Clause 16 of the Regulation sets out the processes the Commission must follow to review a decision following a written application to review an exclusion being received.

The Commission must:

• Give the licensee a written notice stating that they may, within 2 weeks of the notice
  being received, provide a written response about the matters in the notice;
• Have regard to any response provided by the licensee; and
• By written notice, confirm, revoke or amend the licensee’s decision, having regard to the matters mentioned in section 1.15 of the Code.
• The notice must be in the form of a reviewable decision notice.

The Commission’s decision is reviewable by the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal (ACAT).

Process

Written application received to review an exclusion.

Written advice is forwarded to the applicant acknowledging the receipt of their application and advising of the process.

The licensee is initially contacted by phone and advised of the application for review. An informal discussion may be had at this time around the circumstances for the exclusion being initiated and advising of the process.

The licensee is sent a written notice in accordance with clause 16 of the Regulation and requested to provide all documentation they used to come to their decision to exclude the applicant.

If required the applicant may be contacted to provide clarification on any matters raised by them or the licensee.

All information received from both the applicant and licensee is assessed. When a decision is made by the delegate a notice in the form of a reviewable decision notice is forwarded to the licensee, applicant and any other person whose interests are affected by the decision.

Making a Decision

All staff that have any involvement in gambling related aspects within a club must have completed Responsible Service of Gambling (RSG) training. In addition to this all licensees must have a trained Gambling Contact Officer (GCO) who has undertaken additional problem gambling related training. This training is to provide the participant with a degree of knowledge and skills in identifying, talking to, assessing and then being able to make an informed decision on whether the person they are talking with may have a gambling problem.

It should be noted that consideration of the application does not involve a determination of whether a person does in fact have a gambling problem. The Commission’s review involves an assessment of whether the licensee had reasonable grounds to believe that the welfare of the person or their dependants was seriously at risk because of a person’s gambling problem and that the licensee had regard to the matters outlined in sections 1.2 and 1.15 of the Code when making its decision.