Christchurch Casino License Riding on Charitable Trust Donations
Christchurch Casino was one of the first gambling companies to receive an operating licence back in 1993. They received a 25-year licence, and now they are up for a casino licence renewal. However, in new developments, the Gambling Commission has a condition for the gambling company to be able to renew their licence.
The condition that Christchurch Casino has to meet is to increase their donations to the charitable trust. They have to raise their charitable contributions by not less than 2.5% from their annual net profit. In New Zealand dollars they will have to contribute NZ$250 000 per year.
In addition to paying the Gambling Commission’s charitable trust, they have to pay NZ$100 000 to a charity of their choosing. Another condition is that none of the organizations they choose to make a donation to can be associated with gambling.
Casino Licence Submissions
The Gambling Commission had also requested for submissions to be made for the Christchurch Casino licence renewal. In total, the commission collected 74 submissions. They had 64 submissions which were in favour of renewing the licence. Those in favour included the charitable trust beneficiaries, Christchurch employees and local businesses. What’s more, there were only seven submissions that were against the renewal and three who were impartial.
When the submissions were made, they highlighted the impact that the casino has on tourism and, most importantly, on the recovery of the 2011 earthquake. As a result, the Gambling Commission had to look at the economic and social benefit of the licence, whether it renews it or not.
Christchurch Casino Submitted a Renewal Licence Report
The gambling company had submitted a report that highlighted the impact should they not receive the licence. This included the employees that will be affected. Christchurch Casino currently has 104 full-time equivalent jobs employs about 478 staff.
In terms of the national economy, the casino has been able to boost the gross disposable national income from NZ$70 million to NZ140 million in a year. This amounted in about NZ$18 million in direct tax.
As part of the report submission, the Gambling Commission required the casino to provide them with information about 15 people with significant influence in running the casino. They had to include police reports, Companies Office and Department of Internal Affairs, Insolvency and Trustee Service.
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