22-Apr-09. Ontario lottery recalls 92 tickets. Globe and Mail, A12.

The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. is replacing or refunding lottery tickets that were purchased  during a three-hour period Monday because of a computer glitch. The wrong draw date was printed on 92 out of more than 560,000 tickets sold between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. which makes them null and void.

18-Apr-09. The big bluff. Globe and Mail, A1.

This lengthy article provdes additional details about a $3.5-billion lawsuit that was been filed against the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. on behalf of more than 10,000 problem gamblers. Those eligible to join the proposed class action are an estimated 10,428 gamblers who signed the self-exclusion contract between Dec. 1, 1999 and Feb. 10, 2005. The proposed class action also has implications for Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Quebec and Saskatchewan, seven provinces that also have self-exclusion contracts and whose governments are responsible for enforcing them.

10-Apr-09. Red tape may delay horse racing at Lacombe. Red Deer Advocate, B1.

Horse racing at Alberta Downs could be halted if Lacombe County development conditions are not met soon. Only a week before the first harness racing event was scheduled, the developer has not received necessary provincial government sign-offs on drainage and other site work. Construction on the $8-million to $10-million race track has been ongoing for more than two years at the 142-acre site at the corner of Hwy 12 and Hwy 2.

9-Apr-09. Gambler’s lawsuit blames casinos for loss of homes, job. Calgary Herald, A7.

Peter Dennis of Markham, Ontario claims casino staff didn’t do enough to keep him away from the slots is suing the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) for $3.5-billion.  Dennis, who has a history of gambling problems, claims to have lost more than $600,000 at Woodbine Racetrack and at Casino Rama, both in the Toronto area. The OLG says the self-exclusion program does not constitute a legal contract and it’s not something it can easily police.

8-Apr-09. Casinos let him wager, gambling addict sues. Globe and Mail, A7.

A man in Ontario has launched a $3.5-billion class action lawsuit against the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. for allowing him to keep gambling even though he had authorized them to stop him from entering casinos. Under the voluntary self-exclusion program started inthe mid-1990s, problem gamblers can sign a form authorizing the province’s gambling facilities to use their “best efforts” to keep them out or remove them if they enter. The proposed class action filed in Ontario Superior Court and served this week suggests the program was a sham that profited from the most vulnerable gamblers.

7-Apr-09. The problem with gambling exposés. National Post, A14.

In this article, Bill Rutsey, president and CEO of the Canadian Gaming Association calls for the adoption of a balanced forward-looking approach with respect to gambling and problem gambling in Canada. He is concerned that the recent CBC documentary Playing the Machines and the W-Five episode “Winners and Losers” do not indicate that the vast majority of gamblers do not experience problems. Repeated research by the Canadian Partnership for Responsible Gambling shows that approximately 1 per cent of Canadians can be classified as problem gamblers. Rutsey notes that Canadian government and gaming industry groups invest $102-million annually in responsible gaming awareness, education, treatment and research — more per capita than in any other country in the world.

3-Apr-09. VLT supporters making headway in Rocky Mountain House. Red Deer Advocate, B1.

Petitioners pushing to have VLTs (video lottery terminals) returned to Rocky Mountain House are poised to present their names to town council. A group of pub owners formed an association last year and needs 732 names, which represents 10 per cent of the town’s population of 7,230. They say that business is down this year and that many people go to the nearby communities of Leslieville and Caroline to play VLTs.

31-Mar-09. Toddler left in car at casino. Red Deer Advocate, A6.

A man is facing child abandonment charges after police rescued a toddler who was left in a car in a Calgary casino parking lot for six hours in frigid temperatures. Cases of children being left along outside casinos happens more often that you’d think, according to Garry Smith of the Alberta Gaming Research Institute at the University of Alberta. Smith says that usually the parent has a gambling addiction, which has been shown to cause people to forget their responsibilities.

28-Mar-09. Gambling is a sure thing: we lose. Red Deer Advocate, C4.

In this opinion-style article by Bob Ripley, Senior Minister at Metropolitan United Church in London, Ontario, it is argued that lotteries are essentially a tax that governments levy on the poor. These products are sold with the false hope of winning and position themselves as supporting programs often designed to help those most susceptible to gambling in the first place. Ripley also notes that there have been numerous cases of fraud in provincial lotteries over the past few years and that lotteries are uncharitable.