A BATTLE for supremacy in the bookmaking industry is the reason why 57 bookmaking agents are today without a job, says Laurence Jones,a member of the International Association of Gaming attorneys .
He was responding to the Betting, Gaming and Lotteries Commission's (BGLC) decision not to renew the operating permits of the 57 when they came up for renewal last week. Chairman of the BGLC Walter Scott told The Gleaner in a previous interview that the decision affected agents with matters outstanding before a BGLC dispute tribunal.
"It is a power play," said Mr. Jones. "You had big men on both sides who decided to see who had the bigger cojones."
Total betting sales by bookmakers last year amounted to $1.8 billion coming from hundreds of retail outlets across the island. Of the total sales, $760 million comes from overseas sales.
When horseracing starts at Caymanas Park, agents have to close their operations. The law thus prevents them from earning money by taking wagers on overseas racing.
"Stakeholders (bookmakers in particular) complain about the opening hours as they think it is unfair," Mr. Jones said. Reform to the act has been approved by Cabinet and draft legislation has been distributed to stakeholders, including amendments which involve removing restrictions on opening hours, but the old law still stands.
"Bookmakers felt they had enough power to push their views through," Mr. Jones said. "The BGLC chairman decided not to accept that and the agents are taking the blow."
The Gleaner was told by the Commission that its executive director, Derek Peart, was the appropriate person to contact, but Mr. Peart was not in office yesterday.
"The case over the opening hours involves both bookmakers as well as their agents," said Egerton Chang, managing director of Capital Betting and Wagering as well as Big A Track, which have a combined total of 75 shops.
While both bookmakers and agents were involved in the BGLC tribunal hearings, the Commission decided to act against the agents. Based on the BGLC actions last week, Mr. Chang said, "The agents are being pre-judged."
Markham Betting was the worst affected bookmaker with 13 agents without licenses. Markham operates a total of 35 locations.
