How Sportmen's Association Views Gaming Report

Chronicle (Levin), 7 January 1948, Page 5

How Sportmen's Association Views Gaming Report

Press -j. Association )

( Per

WELLINGTON, Jan. 7. The Dominion Sportsmen's Association will almost cef tainly go mto recess beeause of the recommeiiaations of the Commission, stated the secretary of the association, Mr. Ri. H.'Clegg, today. Although the final decision would be made by the executive, he could see no alternative to closing down. Until Parliament met again he personally was not prepared to carry on. This decision, he said, would mean that the facilities of the assoeiation Would not be available to' bookmakers, and that if they continued with their business they would have to arrange to receive results and dividends as best they could. . . ... "The public will then see what it is like not to be able. to bet as .they wanted to, and our hope, is that there will be such a flood of protests that those recommendations will not be adopted," said Mr. Clegg_. "These recommendations could not be worse. The Commission must haVe been inspired. I flatter myself that -I know what efficiency is with off -course betting, and I definitely consider that these proposals could not work. We never drearpt for one second that these recommendations would be made. I couldn't believe it when I heard the news. We really thought that our ease . was foolproof, and I was certain that bookmaking in this Country . would be licensed. We thought that 'we had the only machinery in the country to cope with off-course bettihg, and I still think we have a system ifi operation that will not be equalled, and cer tainly not excelled. 'Tf these proposals are adopted we're finished. We're hit, but there is no use in our squealing. The public are going to be hit soon and it will be up to them to protest hard enough for the report to be set aside. That is our only chance. If dividends are to be -broadcast, as suggested by the Commission, there will be no need for the association. Anyone who wants to be a bookmaker will be able to go into business any time. All the information he needs will be provided by the Government. The post office is going to be cluttered up with betting transactions to the exclusion of ordinary business, and 'thefr services will be even less able to copQ with the rush than they are now. I can't see how they will manage." Mr. Clegg added that he could not see the average betting person- going down to the post office every time he fancied a horse. Such an arrangement would be cumbersome. At present bookmakers' charts were the best advertisement the racing clubs had. When the public found that that material was not. gohig ,-to be available, they would lose t'ouch with the horses. ahd their interest in racing would lsssen. _ Alluding to the raid on the association's Auckland office recently. Mr. Clegg concluded: "Now. on top of that, we find that the Commission has made these recommendations. You would have thought that the police would have left the raiding in abeyance until the report was mahe available."