ANTI-GAMBLING campaigner Andrew Wilkie should be practising his poker face.
Bets are being placed over how firmly he can afford to insist on getting his own way on his signature issue of poker machine reform.
The independent parliamentarian extracted a written promise from the Gillard government in September 2010 that it would enact a mandatory pre-commitment scheme to make punters choose how much they were prepared to lose before entering the head-spinning environment of the gambling floor.
Labor has been under great pressure from casino operators, clubs and hotels across Australia to abandon its deal with Mr Wilkie, with the industry embarking on an advertising campaign against the government reminiscent of the mining-funded campaign against the government’s resource rent tax proposal.
When Labor did its much-criticised deal with Liberal pariah Peter Slipper, giving him the speaker’s chair and depriving Mr Wilkie of his casting vote power of life and death over the government, most pundits predicted the ALP would seek to evade its written promise.
The Prime Minister says she remains committed to reducing damage from problem gambling, based on observations in her own electorate.
But speculation is now intense that Labor is set to water down its reform proposals and offer Mr Wilkie some sops that may include a small-scale, geographically limited trial of pre-commitment.
Mr Wilkie’s loss of voting clout in Parliament reduces his chances of holding the government to its promise. No longer able to fulfil his earlier threat to bring down the government if it didn’t reform the law, Mr Wilkie has little alternative but to keep the pressure on to extract whatever reforms he can.
While continuing to insist that he wants Labor to stick to its deal, he is perceived to be giving ground in search of a compromise. But he still holds some aces.
Julia Gillard and federal Labor are well aware of the credibility problems that accompany broken promises. They must also realise that, if they infuriate Mr Wilkie enough to make an outspoken enemy of him, the political price might not be high enough to cost Labor power now, but it could easily be enough to make re-election impossible.
University offers
FOR many students who have just completed the Higher School Certificate, the next hurdle comes today in the form of university offers.
For some, waiting for offers must be just as stressful as sitting the end-of-school exam, with fractions of percentages separating those who gain access to the courses of their choice and those who do not.
The good news is, however, that options exist for those who miss out first time to find a way into the courses they want – even if it takes a little more time and effort.
It’s worth noting too, that much of the ‘‘study’’ that fits young people for a fulfilling life and career takes place outside of educational institutions. Entry is automatic to the university of life.
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