Online Gambling Dead End for Canadian Province
The Finance Minister for Prince Edward Island, Wes Sheridan has admitted that online gambling legislation in the Canadian province is not making any progress.
Sheridan said that efforts to legalize online gambling, which began in 2009, have stalled and, as a result, the province has lost out on literally millions of dollars in tax and licensing revenue.
Sheridan said: "Right now, we're at a dead end."
The idea to introduce online gambling to Prince Edward Island was first introduced to the government by the First Nation Mi'kmaq Confederacy in 2009.
First Nations Online Gambling Venture
While the initial idea was to present the government with the idea that all First Nation in Canada share gaming revenues, the discussions veered towards the idea of internet gambling.
The First Nations proposed that a regulated online gambling industry be introduced across Canada, with a base in Prince Edward Island. The venture would earn revenue for the government and the tribe, it was said.
A committee was established to push the idea forward, comprising of representatives from the government and the tribe. However, very little has been done at committee level, leading Sheridan to express his concern about the lack of progress and the vast sums of money being missed out by the government.
Online Gaming in Other Canadian Provinces
One of the challenges facing Prince Edward Island's fledgling online casino industry is the need to reach agreements with other regulated provinces in Canada, such as British Columbia, Quebec and Ontario, which have already introduced regulated online gaming. Ontario is set to follow suit some time this year, making Canadian online gambling a reality.
Fair and proper revenue sharing agreements would need to be reached with these provinces, said Sheridan.
The Finance Minister said that PEI residents were regularly playing at unregulated sites and he was committed to finding a way for them to gamble at province-based online gaming sites.
"The industry is only going to grow as more people get involved in online gaming," said Sheridan. "We can either stick our heads in the sand and pretend it doesn't take place or we can find solutions... as legislators I believe it is very, very important that we work toward a solution."
Gambling is fairly popular in Prince Edward Island. The province is home to 40 bars and lounges that carry video lottery terminals, as well as two casinos with slot machines and two horse racing revenues.
In 2009-2010, approximately $27 million in net gaming revenue went to the government, of which $611,000 was allocated to problem gambling efforts.
