AUSTRALIAN CASINO REGULATION
remains subject to an exclusive licence, save for Queensland, New South Wales and the Northern Territory where two or more casino licences have been granted. A general overview of the casinos in Australia is as follows: Crown Resorts Crown Resorts Limited (Crown Resorts) owns and operates casinos in each of New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia, more specifically: • Crown Sydney Gaming Pty Ltd (Crown Sydney) holds a restricted casino licence in New South Wales to operate the Crown Sydney casino; • Crown Melbourne Limited (Crown Melbourne) holds an exclusive casino licence in Victoria to operate the Crown Melbourne casino; and • Burswood Limited (Crown Perth) holds an exclusive casino licence in Western Australia to operate the Crown Perth casino, (together, the Crown Group). The Star The Star Entertainment Group Limited (The Star) owns and operates casinos in each of New South Wales and Queensland, more specifically: • The Star Pty Limited (Star Sydney) holds a casino licence in New South Wales to operate The Star Sydney casino; and • The Star Entertainment QLD Limited (Star Queensland) holds a casino licence in Queensland to operate The Star Gold Coast casino and the Treasury Brisbane casino. Other Australian casino operators There are various other entities that own and operate casinos in each of Queensland, South Australia, the Northern Territory, the Australian Capital Territory and Tasmania, more specifically: • Casinos Austria International (Cairns) Pty Ltd (Casinos Austria) holds a casino licence in Queensland to operate the Reef Casino in Cairns, Queensland; • Breakwater Island Limited (Breakwater) holds a casino licence in Queensland to operate the Ville Resort Casino in Townsville, Queensland; • SkyCity Adelaide Pty Limited (SkyCity Adelaide) holds a casino licence in South Australia to operate the SkyCity Adelaide casino; • Delaware North Darwin Casino Pty Ltd holds a casino licence in the Northern Territory to operate Mindil Beach Casino Resort in Darwin, Northern Territory;
• The Iris Group holds a casino licence in each of: • the Northern Territory to operate Lasseters Hotel Casino in Alice Springs, Northern Territory; • the Australian Capital Territory to operate Casino Canberra; and • Acquis Canberra Pty Ltd holds a casino licence in the Australian Capital Territory to operate the Casino Canberra; and • Mulawa Holdings Pty Ltd holds a casino licence in Tasmania to operate each of the Wrest Point Hotel and Casino in Hobart, Tasmania and the Country Club Casino in Prospect Vale, Tasmania. The closer regulatory scrutiny to which the Australian casino sector is now subject can only be described as a domino effect, with origins in the wrongdoings uncovered through various inquiries into the conduct of the Crown Group. Crown Resorts Following allegations in Australian media regarding unlawful and/or improper conduct by Crown Resorts and its subsidiaries (being its casino licensees), which included allegations of money laundering, links to organised crime and that Crown Resorts had knowledge that its personnel were acting in contravention of Chinese law, various inquiries were convened, namely: • New South Wales: The New South Wales Casino Inquiry (the Bergin Inquiry), which inquired into (among other matters) the suitability of Crown Sydney to give effect to a restricted casino licence and the suitability of Crown Resorts to be associated with Crown Sydney (noting that Crown Sydney had not yet commenced its casino business at the time of the Bergin Inquiry); • Victoria: The Royal Commission into the Casino Operator and Licence (Victorian Royal Commission), which inquired into (among other matters) the suitability of Crown Melbourne to continue to hold a casino licence and the suitability of Crown Resorts (and other associated entities) to be associated with Crown Melbourne; and • Western Australia: The Perth Casino Royal Commission (Western Australian Royal Commission), which inquired into the suitability of Crown Perth to continue to hold a casino licence, or to be concerned in or associated with the organisation and conduct of the gaming operations of a licensed casino and the suitability of Crown Resorts (and other associated entities) to be concerned in or
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IMGL MAGAZINE | JANUARY 2023
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