Government unable to track number of online gamblers: Tan Chuan-jin
File photo: CNET
While the government tries to track gambling rates in Singapore through surveys, it is not able to ascertain the exact number of people who place bets online, said Minister for Social and Family Development Tan Chuan-Jin.
Speaking in Parliament on Monday (10 October), Tan was responding to a question from MP Christopher De Souza about how many individuals have been gambling illegally online since the Remote Gambling Act was passed in February 2015.
De Souza, MP for Holland-Bukit Timah, suggested that the numbers might be a basis for comparison, once online gambling is allowed in Singapore.
Tan replied that while it is “very difficult” to track specific numbers online, trends and patterns can be discerned once authorities track the numbers “more definitively”.
Over the next two months, lottery operators Singapore Pools and Singapore Turf Club will launch online gambling products after getting exemption from the Remote Gambling Act, which outlaws online and phone gambling.
Tan explained in an interview last week that the move aims to create a “managed space” and offer a “safer alternative” for those looking to place online bets.
Noting that the global market for online gambling is growing, the Minister told the House that the issues of cyberspace extend to the real world, with criminal syndicates often linked to illegal gambling operations.
“Having a tightly managed, controlled space with safeguards put in place will perhaps allow those who continue to gamble online to have a space where at least some level of management can take place,” said Tan.
A growing issue
Yahoo file photo
Members of Parliament Denise Phua, Lee Bee Wah and Pritam Singh also rose to question Tan and Senior Minister of State for Home Affairs Desmond Lee on the forthcoming move to allow online betting in Singapore.
Citing a 2013 study of more than 1,000 respondents commissioned by the Ministry of Home Affairs, Desmond Lee noted that three in ten acknowledged participating in remote gambling at least once in the past. Two-thirds of them were between the ages of 25 and 34.
One estimate even suggested that online gambling in Singapore in 2015 could be worth as much as $461 million, said Lee – this in spite of the Remote Gambling Act. On the enforcement front, from 2015 till now, the police have arrested more than 120 people involved in illegal remote gambling.
“A total ban will create larger incentives for criminal syndicates to target Singaporeans,” said Lee.
‘No mixed signals’
Phua, an MP for Jalan Besar GRC, asked how the government intended to address the “mixed signals” being sent out by the move to allow online gambling.
But Lee pointed out that when the Remote Gambling Act was passed in 2015,it included a provision that any operator authorised to offer remote gambling would be subject to stringent conditions. In this regard, the government was “very clear upfront” about the “safety valve” of the provision.
Further, the Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Social and Family Development have worked closely to develop a range of social safeguards for the exempt operators.
For example, to prevent youth gambling, remote gambling account holders must be at least 21 years of age. Stringent checks to verify the identity of applicants, such as face-to-face verification, will be carried out. Further, all account holders will be required to set a daily funding and expenditure limit.
Lee acknowledged that many in the House had “personal convictions” about gambling, but noted that it was necessary to take a “national viewpoint” on the issue.
