Maryborough Highland Society barrister Peter Caillard made a late bid to swing the VCAT decision on the Castlemaine pokies fight his way in the dying minutes of the last day of the hearing, Friday, December 14.
In his right of reply, Mr Caillard told VCAT Deputy President Mark Dwyer that his client would be willing to accept a condition to ensure the $50,000 cash contribution was paid as a community contribution each year.
He said if there were insufficient funds for the proposed venue operator, the Castlemaine Sports and Community Club (The Club) to pay the amount then MHS would “pick it up”.
Mr Caillard said there was some doubt over whether the tribunal could impose such a condition and furnished Mr Dwyer with a few alternatives.
One alternative was to pay the $50,000 annually to Mount Alexander Shire Council to distribute as it sees fit to problem gambling services in the municipality.
He said another alternative could be to include a requirement in the management agreement between MHS and The Club that it must be paid.
Mr Caillard said his final option was already in place, under existing VCGR laws which states that a promised community contribution has to be paid otherwise the applicant (MHS in this case) could face serious repercussions such as losing its venue operator’s licence (for the Maryborough Highland Society and the Kyneton Bowling Club); and/or disciplinary action.
Victorian Commission of Gambling Regulation barrister Liam Brown was the only party left with a say on the matter and he basically agreed that Mr Caillard’s latter alternative could be met under VCGR guidelines.
Mr Brown also suggested that a further requirement could be included to make the applicant report to the VCGR annually to ensure the annual community contribution had been paid.
Mr Dwyer took all of the information on board and had the final say at the hearing.
“It’s been a long hearing (10 days in total) and I wish to ensure all parties that I will not be approaching this decision with any reluctance. Instead, I will approach it with a great deal of seriousness,” Mr Dwyer said.
Mr Dwyer said there had been a strong community contingent from the (central Victorian region) attending the hearing.
“I thank the members of the community for their participation and I can assure you that your views will be taken into account.”
Mr Dwyer said he had to distil a great deal of information from all parties and that it would probably be February before a decision was announced.
