The Tribune

By KHRISNA VIRGIL

Tribune Staff Reporter

kvirgil@tribunemedia.net

WITH public concern growing that the government is allowing web shop chiefs to “get off with a slap on the wrist,” Prime Minister Perry Christie said his administration’s initial decision to impose a $1 million licensing fee might be reconsidered.

This change, Mr Christie told The Tribune, came with his administration’s realisation that legalising web shop gaming in the country was far from an easy feat. He said estimates of a new fee could not be made at this time.

He made the announcement outside of the House of Assembly following his communication on the referendum which has been postponed to January 28, 2013. Mr Christie had originally set the date for December 3. 

“This whole question of the qualifying standard here,” he said, “may be the financial commitment that has to be made. I’ve been using $1 million for licensing. These are matters that will come post the referendum when we work out the regulations and we work out all that will govern this.

“I have to admit that we never anticipated that we would have to go extensively ourselves into web shop operations looking at what really would be their gross pay, looking at the amount of money that they are spending and what they do. If the Bahamian people vote ‘yes’ we are going to do that and that’s when the final determination will be made as to what they have to pay to play.”

Mr Christie also addressed concerns that his government’s desire to pursue the referendum was the result of his administration’s efforts to appease web shop chiefs. He said there had neither been a decision on who would be awarded licenses should the legalisation go through. However, the Prime Minister said the previous Ingraham administration had been in consultation with four or five web shop bosses.

“The only concern I had as I expressed is that just as the country had a limit on the casinos we have, we have to be careful with the decision in licensing these web shops. Now, how many web shops exist is really the question.

“I found that the Ministry of Finance, before my time, were dealing with four possibly five (bosses) and that the Ministry in dealing with them, was creating a framework where these four or five would be licensed and others would be sub-licensed under them. I took a different approach. I said firstly we have to know what exists.”

In the lead up to the referendum, Mr Christie also admitted that the country has seen a sudden proliferation of web shops, the most recent he said, is a group of Chinese nationals that have set up shop in the Market Street area.

“Now when people heard that we were now talking about a period where we were considering a referendum, everyone started to open these shops so we have to look carefully at this whole question, the qualifying standard.”

Moving forward, Mr Christie repeated his government’s commitment to educate the electorate on what voting “yes” or “no” means.

As for how the referendum question might me structured, Mr Christie said voters will have a better idea when debates take place next week in the House.