Thoughts on BC Politics and More

Provinces call it “revenue,” but it looks a lot like exploitation of the marginalized The odds of winning Lotto Max are about 1 in 33 million. You’re statistically more likely to be struck by lightning than to win it. But your government is betting that statistics won’t hold you back; they’re counting on it. Across Canada, provincial governments not only regulate gambling, they also maintain a monopoly on lottery and gaming by owning and operating the entire legal market. That means every scratch card is government-issued, gambling odds are government-set, casino ads are government-funded and lottery billboards are government-paid. And these are not incidental government activities. They generate significant revenues that governments have powerful incentives to expand, not constrain. It would be one thing for our governments to encourage us to engage in healthy activities. We can quibble about whether the government should be trying to convince us to be more active or eat more vegetabl...

IMAGE CREDIT:   BC Lottery Corporation   Canada’s financial intelligence agency has hit the British Columbia Lottery Corporation with a $1.075-million penalty for failing to report suspicious transactions and monitor high-risk high-rollers — the first major suspected money-laundering case against the province’s casino arm since the Cullen Commission, whose more than 100 recommendations remain largely ignored by Premier David Eby’s government. The case centers on BCLC’s failure to report suspicious cash transactions tied to a particular “high-risk” gambler, as well as its failure to maintain adequate compliance measures for such cases. The provincial Crown corporation has appealed the decision in Federal Court, reportedly contending that Fintrac failed to consider whether the gambler’s “perceived uncooperativeness and inconsistencies arose from linguistic and cultural differences”  ... CLICK HERE for the full sytory

A 2021 report compiled by H2 Gambling Capital for the provincial government estimated that British Columbia residents were wagering as much as $5.3 billion on unregulated online websites per year, with total gross revenues of more than $200 million — a figure the BC government believes has nearly doubled in the years since.  The gambling sector analysis also found the most-visited unregulated websites were major players in the global online gambling market, who have spent years lobbying the BC government to let them operate legally in the province.  Michael Thompson, the executive director of the BC Gaming Industry Alliance ... says this is evidence British Columbia should resist pressure to open up the market to private competitors ... CLICK HERE for the full story

British Columbia’s government says it has no plans to change gambling laws as companies continue pushing the province to legalize private online gaming. Lobbyists with some of the world’s largest online gambling platforms have contacted top-tier government officials in recent months, urging the province to follow Ontario and now Alberta in regulating private betting websites they argue many British Columbians are using anyway. But the government says it has no plans to do so — at least for now ... CLICK HERE for the full story ( free subscription required to access this story )

           BC Finance Minister Selina Robinson   This government, well just about any government if we truly want to think about it, loves to crow about monies they shell out to communities, along with groups and organizations. Sadly, far too many people fail to connect the dots; consumer taxes, personal taxes, fees, and revenues that come from the BC Lottery Corporation are where this money comes from. Call me cynical, but that’s at least the way I see it --- and I always, when seeing the latest media releases from the government, tend to read/review them carefully. Take this one today. “B.C. fairs, festivals, events benefit from recovery funding” , which you can find by clicking here .  Where did the money for the “ Fairs, Festivals and Events Recovery Fund grant” come from? Already, on a number of occasions, the provincial NDP government of Premier John Horgan has dipped into (or should I say ‘raided’) the BC Rural Dividen...

In light of Christy Clark's visit to Kamloops just the other day, I thought it might be interesting to revisit a post that I had up ELECTION 2013 ... and a visit to our city by the BC Liberal leader and her entourage.   Read on, from this day in history, April 16th, 2013. Today BC Liberal Premier Christy Clark told voters here in Kamloops, and around the province, that we are headed in to the “ the most important election in modern history ”. I couldn't agree with her more!  The writ has finally been dropped, and I'm sure it is a relief to all British Columbians, because several key things seem to be weighing heavily on the minds of people here in our Kamloops South Thompson riding. The Liberal Platform doesn't address the financial problems which THEY have created, and banking on the possibility of future billions of revenues from liquefied natural gas is a risky bet.  BC Liberals still fail to understand governm...

On Wednesday December 7th, Peter Fassbender (Minister of Community, Sport and Cultural Development) released information about on-going, and up-coming, changes it was making to the Community Gaming Program. He stated: “ I want to thank the Office of the Auditor General for completing their thorough performance audit of our Community Gaming Grants program. I am pleased that the audit found government has a suitable framework in place to administer the program, and we recognize that improvements are needed in some key areas. “The report outlines 10 recommendations, including the development of a performance management framework, and to evaluate the approach used in assessing applications. Government accepts all 10 recommendations ." A brief summary, and history, of gaming and gambling in British Columbia reminds us that: up to 1969 public gambling / gaming was illegal in Canada then in the 1970s non-profit organizations were able to generate ...