Sports Betting Legislation in Canada May Meet Summer Recess

A year ago the Canadian House of Commons passed the bill C-290, a private member proposal to change restrictive sports betting laws by allowing single-game wagering, but instead of being a routine, the approval of the Senate may fail if the bill faces the recesses for the summer at the end of June. Political arguments and a busy schedule have created a situation where the bill could run out of time which is probably what some of the bill's opponents have in mind. On the other hand, supporters of the bill are insistent that the proposal, which received overwhelming support in the Commons, overcome the obstacles and be passed. Senate Leader Marjory LeBreton said she would like to see long-delayed measures like C-290 finalised properly, instead of simply running out of time, before the Senate shuts down. The wide support to C-290 came from the bricks and mortar industry, as well as from gambling-related trade unions. The latest debate on the bill in the Senate raised a problem gambling increase issues which were refuted by Sen. Terry Mercer, who referred to the 2007 scientific study of almost 43,000 subjects in 80 nations, conducted by the Division on Addiction of the Cambridge Health Alliance at Harvard University. The study was commissioned by the European online gambling group Bwin and received wide acclaim, but largely stony silence from gambling critics. The key finding was that a massive majority of gamblers moderate their betting behaviour and know when to quit a session. Respected researchers reported that a whopping 99 percent of sports punters were 'moderate' gamblers, placing an average of four to five bets per week at an average stake of Euro 4, leading to a weekly loss of Euro 2. The other 1 percent were categorised as more involved, placing an average 16 wagers a week with stakes over ten times higher, resulting in correspondingly larger losses. They particularly favoured in-play betting, 42 wagers a week with stakes over Euro 50 per bet, and often add to poker and casino gambling. As Mercer pointed out, the survey's authors observed that the results showed how speculation that internet gambling encourages excessive gambling amongst a significant proportion of gamblers simply wasn't true.