Proposal to reform the gambling business in Canada.

I don’t often see an article in the Sports section that is even usually remotely related to the politics spectrum, but there was one today by Dave Perkins of the Toronto Star arguing that in lieu of all that is happening with the scandal at the Ontario Lotto Gaming Corporation, now would be a great time for governments to get out of the gambling business and hand them over to private hands and impose taxes on them to maintain their revenue:

Here’s the solution: First, legalize Internet gambling and register and tax the participants. Britain did it three years ago and reaped £1.4 billion in tax revenues the first year. Internet bookmakers would gladly go legal, advertise and pay taxes. Customers would be foolish to use non-licenced operators and companies would compete for our business, always a good thing for the consumer. Next, we set up betting shops, like William Hill or Ladbrokes (and others) that operate all over the United Kingdom. You want to bet, you go to your local bet shop. You bet the football match, horse races, buy lottery tickets, play a slots machine, whatever you like. Winners get paid, losers yell at the television set….Let’s grow up and make the public’s gambling habit a controlled, regulated and taxed experience. Let’s do it now.

He makes a pretty good case for it. I recommend reading the whole article.