Dean McPherson, a member of the Democratic Alliance (DA), expressed concern about the loss of jobs and significant South African tax revenue due to the lack of legalization of online gambling in the country.
While online casinos are still banned, online fixed-odds sports betting is allowed. Several companies, including Betway, Hollywoodbets, and Sportingbet, have become very successful and now sponsor South Africa’s national and provincial sports teams, channeling tens of millions of rands.
The DA has introduced a second bill aimed at regulating online gambling in South Africa. The first attempt to pass a similar bill was made by Georgin Hill-Lewis, the current mayor of Cape Town, in 2015, but the national assembly rejected it.
Some critics of the bill believe that it will limit opportunities for the population, while others fear an increase in white-collar crime.
Dean McPherson is confident that their new remote gambling bill has received enough support. He also noted that the provincial gambling boards had changed their attitude toward online gambling, realizing its potential profits if legalized. Some provinces have already begun issuing licenses on their own.
According to the City Press, the new bill requires public consultation and will be referred to the Speaker of the National Assembly for further consideration in parliamentary committees. The DA published an updated remote gambling bill in September 2022 for public comment.
An amendment to the Gambling Act that President Thabo Mbeki approved on July 10, 2008, sought to regulate interactive gambling. However, the president has not enacted it, so interactive and online gambling are not currently regulated in South Africa.
Dean McPherson stated that the lack of regulation of this gambling activity leads to breaking the law and increasing crime by not providing sufficient protection to the public. Moreover, the lack of regulation results in a loss of revenue and jobs in other jurisdictions where gambling is already legal. For example, according to www.twinspinca.com, many South Africans play online at Canadian casinos even though they are illegal and only accept Canadian dollars. All tax revenue goes to the countries where the casinos are registered.
The Remote Gambling Bill, according to the district attorney, would allow the government to control illegal gambling sites and require them to pay taxes in South Africa. It would also regulate the issuance of licenses by the relevant provincial authorities, establish procedures for objections to licenses, regulate advertising of interactive and online casinos, protect minors and vulnerable persons, and comply with the Financial Intelligence Act (FICA).
Thus, the purpose of the Remote Gambling Bill is to fill a gap in the law relating to interactive gambling. It seeks to address the problems with the Amendments Act and is one of the reasons it was not enacted.