*************************************

Following is a question by the Hon Andrew Cheng and a reply by the Acting Secretary for Home Affairs, Mr Michael Suen, in the Legislative Council today (July 10):

Question:

The Gambling (Amendment) Ordinance 2000, which is targeted at gambling activities between people in Hong Kong and offshore gambling companies, came into operation on 31 May this year. However, it has been reported that some offshore gambling companies are still accepting bets from Hong Kong through various means. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council of:

(a) the respective numbers of offshore bookmakers, intermediaries and punters arrested by the Police for involvement in the above gambling activities since the commencement of the Ordinance;

(b) the number of offshore gambling companies which have stopped accepting bets from Hong Kong since the commencement of the Ordinance; and

(c) the number of offshore gambling companies which are still accepting bets from Hong Kong, their means of accepting such bets and the measures taken by the Police to combat such gambling activities?

Reply:

Madam President,

My reply is as follows:

(a) Since the commencement of operation of the Gambling (Amendment) Ordinance 2002 (the Amendment Ordinance), all unauthorized gambling activities conducted by way of trade or business are illegal, regardless of whether the bet is received within or outside Hong Kong. Police's enforcement actions against illegal gambling activities are targeted at bookmakers, including intermediaries and bankers.

From the commencement of operation of the Amendment Ordinance until July 2, a total of 81 persons suspected to be intermediaries and bankers were arrested by the Police. The betting slips and other exhibits seized by the Police have so far offered no clues as to whether these 81 people were involved in receiving outside Hong Kong bets which were placed from Hong Kong. As for punters, so far no one has been arrested for engaging in cross-border betting activities.

(b) Since the commencement of operation of the Amendment Ordinance, we have noted that some offshore gambling companies that used to target Hong Kong as a market had ceased promoting their business and providing betting-related services in Hong Kong. They have also indicated that they would not receive bets placed from Hong Kong. As we have not kept a record of the number of gambling companies that accept cross-border bets in the world, we do not have statistics on how many of them have stopped receiving bets placed from Hong Kong since the commencement of operation of the Amendment Ordinance.

(c) As we have not kept a record of the number of gambling companies that accept cross-border bets in the world, we do not have statistics on how many of them have continued to receive bets from Hong Kong since the commencement of operation of the Amendment Ordinance.

We do not have comprehensive information on the means adopted by offshore gambling companies to receive bets. As far as we know, most of them take bets through telephone and the Internet. Dividends are transferred into the deposit or credit card accounts designated by the punters, or paid by sending cheques to the winners by mail.

The Police will closely monitor the development trend of illegal cross-border gambling activities. Action will be taken where appropriate to suppress illegal gambling activities based on intelligence received. Furthermore, the Police have maintained close liaison with the law enforcement agencies in the Mainland and other jurisdictions to exchange intelligence and join hands in combating illegal cross-border gambling activities.

During the 2002 World Cup Finals, the Police have worked closely with the law enforcement agencies in Malaysia, Singapore and the Mainland. Their concerted efforts led to the raids on 11 bookmaking centres in these three places and the seizure of betting slips totalling more than HK$20 million.

A particular point that I would like to make is that the effectiveness of the Amendment Ordinance should not be assessed merely by the number of law enforcement actions taken. We should also take account of the overall effectiveness of the Amendment Ordinance in deterring illegal cross-border gambling activities and other related services, and in educating the public against involvement in such illegal activities.

In fact, apart from the fact that some offshore gambling companies have stopped receiving bets placed from Hong Kong since the commencement of operation of the Amendment Ordinance, many local banks and credit card issuing institutions have adopted proactive measures such as preventing the use of bank accounts for illegal gambling purposes and prohibiting the use of credit cards in illegal gambling activities. These measures have made the participation in such illegal gambling less convenient and the transaction cost higher, which in turn will help reduce illegal cross-border gambling activities. We therefore consider that the Amendment Ordinance has initially achieved the purpose of reducing and suppressing cross-border gambling activities.

End/Wednesday, July 10, 2002

NNNN