Accountability

October 18, 2004

Government's On-Line Gambling

The Solicitor General, Rich Coleman, appears to be a little confused over on-line gambling and privacy. During legislative question period on October 18th, Jenny Kwan and Joy MacPhail asked the Minister of State for Mental Health and Addiction Services, Brenda Locke, several questions. Coleman answered in her place on all but one question dealing with gambling addiction. The one time she spoke was to say Coleman was responsible. Before becoming an MLA, Locke lobbied on behalf of pub owners for relaxed smoking rules. Her appointment as Minister responsible for addiction services appeared bizarre at the time; now that she has been seen in action in question period, the appointment is even more troubling. Locke said that she is responsible for substance abuse, not gambling addiction. Apparently the Campbell government doesn't consider gambling addiction to be a health issue, even though those with the problem and those around them suffer suicide rates that are several times the rate for non-problem gamblers.

Coleman maintained that the on-line sale of lottery tickets is not on-line gambling but simply a substitute for buying a ticket at the local store. The local store doesn't send you email to encourage further betting, but guess who does. The local store does not have interactive demonstrations on how to bet, but the on-line version does. Underage gamblers can easily break the law and purchase and redeem lottery tickets at the local store; what about on-line? In order to register to play on-line, all that is necessary is to complete name, address, phone number and birthdate. The site then says:

"The British Columbia Lottery Corporation values your privacy. Your personal information is required to determine that you are an age of majority resident of British Columbia and to ensure that you are eligible to win prizes. Your information will never be released to any third parties and will NOT be used to communicate with you unless you provide your consent. For more information on our privacy policy, click here."

How can BC Lottery Corporation use your name and address to verify your age? During question period, Coleman said that the Corporation checks the information against various databases. Oops! That could be illegal. BC's Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, as well as the recent Personal Information Protection Act, make it illegal for anyone to provide information for any purpose that has not been authorized. You use a credit card to purchase a lottery ticket on BC Lottery's on-line webpage, and the corporation then checks with Equifax to verify your address and age. That probably makes it more difficult for underage gamblers to buy on-line than it is for them to buy at the local store, but it may also be a violation of privacy laws. BC Lotteries maintains that if you click on "terms of use" (something advised, but, unlike the standard procedure with software license agreements, it is not required in the registration process), and if you read far enough through the small print, you come upon the words:

"Personal information BCLC collects from you during your use of the Site may be used by BCLC to: (1) verify that you are permitted to access and/or use the Site; (2) assist you with your access to and/or use of the Site, and verify your entitlement to any contest/promotion prize or giveaway and any other Site benefit; (3) help protect you from unauthorized use of your Player Name or your Password; (4) assist BCLC and its service providers with any aspect or operation of the Site; (5) help BCLC plan future online marketing campaigns; and (6) provide a better experience for visitors to BCLC’s web sites, improve products and services, help BCLC better understand its customers’ needs, and bring other products and services to your attention."

It is arguable whether that meets the requirements of the Personal Information Protection Act, but it is unlikely that anyone will test the issue in court. If it is a violation, you can bet that they will soon plug the problem, with legislation if necessary, so as to let nothing stand in the way of further gambling expansion. Notice that the deeply buried waiver contains permission for the Corporation to use your information to "help BCLC plan future online marketing campaigns" and to "bring other products and services to your attention." So much for the on-line expansion being just like the local store.

October 13, 2004

Accountability or a Blank Cheque?

When the Campbell Liberals swept to power with 77 of 79 MLAs, Gordon Campbell didn't wait until the next day before proclaiming that the NDP would not be recognized as the Official Opposition. That was the first of many bad judgments, only to be overshadowed by broken promises that have disillusioned many of his supporters.

There was no uncertainty when Campbell railed against expanded gambling. In fiscal year 2000-01, the last for the former government, the BC Lottery Corporation contributed $414 million to government, down $2 million from the year before. This year gambling is expected to contribute $850 million to provincial coffers, and it is expected to contribute $1.01 billion in 2006-07. That was before the Lottery Corporation introduced on-line gambling. That is an increase of almost 120% over six years!

Just like the promise not to sell BC Rail, the Campbell government is refusing to admit that it changed its mind and broke its promise not to expand gambling. Solicitor General Rich Coleman, Minister responsible for gambling, rudely dismissed the news media and claimed that the Lottery Corporation was simply keeping consistent with a good business plan. When Coleman announced a 50% increase in the number of slot machines at the January 16, 2002, staged cabinet meeting held in Fort St. John, he claimed that it was necessary in order to honour existing contracts. No matter how phony that claim may have been, there is no way to defend the expansion into on-line betting. The truth is that the Campbell government is into gambling, big time.

There's not much difference between the broken promise not to expand gambling, the broken promise not to sell BC Rail, and the broken promise to increase funding for children-in-care. The issue is not one broken promise or another; it is what Gordon Campbell's concept of accountability is. Every day during the 15 minutes of legislative question period, the Campbell government demonstrates its contempt for the Opposition and anyone else who might question their supreme hold on power. When Finance Minister Gary Collins was asked how he can demonstrate whether tax cuts pay for themselves or not, he has responded by saying "wait until the election". The point is that they don't care about anything other than whether they can win the next election. Accountably, Gordon Campbell style, means that they can do whatever they want, and as long as they get re-elected, so what! They've got a point; if people are willing to put them back in power no matter what they do, why should they be accountable on the little things like breaking a promise not to expand gambling?