Summary:
Paul Steel was appointed as the Independent Monitor for Crown Perth by the Western Australia government. A Royal Commission report found that Crown was not the right person to hold a casino and gaming license in Perth. Crown would need a two-year period in which to address any issues highlighted by the report.
Paul Steel was appointed as the Independent Monitor for Crown Perth by the Western Australia Sate Government.
The Royal Commission found that Crown was not an appropriate candidate to hold a casino and gaming license in Perth.
The reports recommended a two-year period during which Crown would need to address any issues highlighted by the report in order to prove that it is suitable for an operator license.
Tony Buti, the Minister of Racing and Gaming, spoke about the appointment.
There is a new era of integrity, accountability and transparency at Perth’s Casino as a result of this latest step in the WA Government’s response to the Royal Commission. Paul Steel has a proven record of delivering great outcomes across a career of almost 30 years in law enforcement and criminal investigation, including in key leadership roles. The purpose of the recent legislation and Independent Monitor is to restore integrity to the casino operator in Perth to ensure that it is operating in a first-class manner. That is what the community expects and that is what the Government requires. The casino operator will recover the cost of the Independent Monitor from the taxpayer.
The Commission found that Crown Perth had failed to implement the correct anti-money-laundering protocols at its casino.
There have been a number of license violations by the company throughout its Australian gambling businesses. In May, Crown Melbourne was fined a record 80 million dollars for an illegal scheme that allowed Chinese high rollers to disguise their gambling expenditures as hotel and entertainment charges. The planned flagship casino in Australia was only given the go ahead to open under strict licensing conditions.