Submission on the Online Casino Gambling Bill

Recreation Aotearoa is the leading professional body supporting New Zealand’s recreation sector, advocating for quality experiences that keep people active, healthy, and connected. Its members include those who create and manage community sport, recreation, and outdoor programmes across the country.

Overview of general comments

Recreation Aotearoa acknowledges the Government’s objective to regulate online casino gambling, which is currently unregulated, to create a safer and compliant market. However, we take issue with the Bill’s failure to ensure that a portion of online casino revenues is returned to communities, including active recreation. For decades, gaming trusts, Lotto, and the TAB have provided vital funding to community sport and recreation. Without similar obligations for online casinos, active recreation organisations face growing financial pressures at a time of rising costs, declining local government support, and reduced sponsorship. Failing to reinvest these funds threatens participation, wellbeing, and social cohesion, while profits are largely repatriated offshore. Recreation Aotearoa strongly urges the Government to embed the principle that “gambling should benefit the community” in the Bill, ensuring a substantial share of online casino revenues supports community sport, recreation, and wellbeing.

Read our submission

For more detail, please read: 

Submission on the Online Casino Gambling Bill

Questions or feedback

If you have any questions, or want to share your views, contact our Advocacy Manager, Sam Newton by email: sam@nzrecreation.org.nz.