Federal Group to receive a 57-per-cent tax cut on revenue from poker machines in 2023
Matt Maloney | Examiner Newspaper | 20 August 2021
Premier Peter Gutwein has stood firm that state cabinet did not finalise consideration over future gaming legislation, including a reduced tax rate for casino poker machines, until after the state election.
Mr Gutwein wrote to Federal Group last December to notify the company the tax rate they would have to pay on takings from electronic gaming machines would be reduced from 25.8 per cent to 10.9 per cent in 2023.
The exposure draft bill for the legislation can be found on Treasury’s website.
Document data information attached to the bill, which contains the various tax rates to be applied to takings for gambling, shows the document was first created on March 9 and modified on July 7.
Mr Gutwein said the letter to Federal Group was to explain the intended tax rates.
“I explained what my intention was, but ultimately cabinet would need to make its final decision on that legislation,” he said. “As Treasurer, I’m allowed to express what my intention are.
“In terms of the government signaling its intentions, it does that regularly, but cabinet did not make its decision until the 24th of May.”
Mr Gutwein early on in the May election campaign refused to disclose the rate that would be applied to poker machines in casinos.
Nelson independent Meg Webb said a cabinet decision was generally needed to authorise legislation to be drafted.
She said it appeared from the document data on Treasury’s website that drafting of the legislation started on March 9.
Ms Webb said the Premier had not provided honest answers on the process undertaken by cabinet in relation to the gaming bill.
“This isn’t about when a final decision was made by cabinet to approve the subsequent draft legislation and its consultation materials,” she said.
“It is a question of when cabinet considered and approved the Future Gaming Markets policy, including the discount casino tax rates, and the dates on which the Premier and cabinet members knew what those rates were intended to be.”
Read Meg’s Media Release here
See the RTI decision here
