15,000 more Singaporeans banned from casino gambling

These low-income, aid-reliant individuals can't risk losing what little money they have, says the government.

“We want to protect the financially vulnerable who can ill afford casino gambling. The 2011 National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG) Gambling Participation Survey showed a small but increasing proportion of low income gamblers who betted large amounts. We want to move proactively to address this,” said Acting Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports Chan Chun Sing.

Invoking the Third-Party Casino Exclusion clause, the government will exclude 15,000 Singaporeans from entering Singapore casinos.

This consists of 12,000 ComCare aid recipients now on short to medium term assistance, most of which are unemployed and in financial need. Likewise, the 3,000 HDB flat tenants are paying subsidised rents with rental arrears of six months or more.

This brings up to 43,000 the number of excluded Singaporeans excluded from casino gambling under Third-Party Casino Exclusion. The other 28,000 comprise undischarged bankrupts and those on long term Public Assistance and Special Grants.