Victoria’s gaming regulator says it took 88 disciplinary actions against operators in 2023-24

Victoria’s gambling regulator, the Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission (VGCCC), took 88 disciplinary actions against gambling licensees and employees for regulatory breaches in the 12 months to 30 June 2024.

The figure formed part of the VGCCC’s 2023-24 Annual Report, which was tabled to Parliament on Thursday and which it says demonstrates a commitment to ensuring gambling providers not only live up to the letter of the law but abide by its spirit.

The past year, the regulator added, saw it implement a new risk-based, intelligence-led regulatory approach while exhibiting zero tolerance to breaches.

“Our regulatory response is proportionate to the risks posed and harms caused when a gambling operator fails to comply with its obligations,” said VGCCC Chair Fran Thorn.

“We have no tolerance for deliberate or opportunistic contraventions of the law and will not hesitate to take appropriate action when we detect a breach.”

The past year also saw the VGCCC undertake more than 1,600 audits and complete 2,770 inspections of venues across the state, bringing 10 successful prosecutions.

Among those to face disciplinary action was Tabcorp – which copped a AU$1 million fine for repeated failure to comply with directions during a VGCCC investigation into a major system outage – and the Australian Leisure and Hospitality Group (ALH) for operating poker machines at eight venues outside of nominated trading hours and failing to observe mandatory shutdown periods.

“In the first year, we received more than 260 tip-offs across a range of issues,” said Thorn.

“We also worked with the AFL to implement tighter controls for Brownlow Medal voting and betting following reports that an umpire allegedly leaked the results of round-by-round voting in 2022.

“And in response to community concerns, we engaged with sports controlling bodies to successfully ban betting in Victoria on all under-19 sporting competitions and the performance of individual players under the age of 18 in junior and senior sports.”

Disciplinary action aside, the 2023-24 reporting year also saw the VGCCC determine that Crown Melbourne was again fit to hold a casino licence, having spent two years under the supervision of a government-appointed Special Manager.

“The licence comes with strict operating conditions, including that Crown continue its reform program under a three-year Transformation Plan against which it will be held to account,” Thorn said.

“We have a responsibility to ensure gambling activities in Victoria are conducted in compliance with regulatory obligations and providers operate safely, fairly and with integrity.”