Remote Interactive Gambling Reforms that Undermine Māori Wellbeing, “Aotearoa cannot auction away its rangatahi”

The Online Safety Iwi Leaders Group is calling for an immediate halt to the government’s plan to auction 15 online casino licenses to predominantly offshore operators, citing concerns over legislative overreach, breaches of Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and misleading public communications.

Pou Tangata Chair Rāhui Papa says the government’s approach flagrantly sidesteps the Gambling Act (2003) and the Gambling (Harm Minimisation) Regulations (2004), neither of which currently permit the operation of online casinos. “Instead of upholding laws designed to protect whānau from gambling harm, the Government is using a licensing workaround to enable new forms of gambling harm under the guise of regulation and safety,” says Mr Papa.

Government Sidestepping the Law

Dr Ruth Herd, a leading Māori public health specialist, says the Gambling Act (2003) was never designed to allow online gambling; the government is taking advantage of public ignorance by creating a regulatory regime that bypasses protections. “Only the TAB and Lotto are authorised to provide online gambling in Aotearoa under current law,” says Dr Herd. “Instead of amending the legislation through due process and public scrutiny, this government is pushing through an auction process that benefits offshore bidders and places young Māori at further risk.”

As reported by Guyon Espiner (RNZ, 11 March 2025), Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden admitted that “we don't have a huge online gambling market, so I would expect that it's mainly offshore providers [who will win the licenses].” She further justified the open market approach, “I'm not here to look out for SkyCity. I'm not here to look out for any established particular casino or their brands. I'm here to ensure that we have a fair marketplace” (Espiner, RNZ).

No Community Contributions, No Tangible Safeguards

A cabinet paper obtained under the Official Information Act, acknowledges the potential loss to community funding if gamblers move from domestic venues like the TAB or Lotto to offshore online platforms. Yet it states the government deliberately avoided imposing community grant obligations on online operators to keep the license auctions attractive. “By adding further financial requirements... New Zealand would become one of the highest taxed jurisdictions for online gambling,” the paper reads. (Espiner, RNZ)

This contradicts long-standing social obligations of domestic operators, where profits are partially redistributed to community causes. As Pub Charity Ltd CEO Martin Cheer put it in the same RNZ report, “instead of the local ambulance service or coast guard or the local footy team getting some money, it's going to offshore shareholders.”

The Government has chosen to prioritise auction attractiveness over public good, and Minister van Velden dismissed concerns about community funding dependencies, saying, “it creates a perverse incentive where we want to see gambling in our communities increase, because more money then flows back into the community” (Espiner, RNZ). To which Cheer responded sharply, “you can’t get any more perverse than sending your money off to some Russian-Croatian shareholder... That’s what I call perverse,” (Espiner, RNZ).

Failing Our Rangatahi

The NZCER 2024 Youth Gambling Review and Youth2000 survey data show gambling is often the first risky behaviour rangatahi engage in, with taiohi Māori disproportionately impacted. The review also highlights the dangers of online gambling being “under the radar,” with limited parental or school oversight, and increased risk of youth accessing unregulated digital gambling platforms.

“Let’s be clear,” says Papa, “this reform will expose more young people to risk. It is gambling harm by stealth.”

Breach of Te Tiriti and the WAI1909 Claim

A contemporary Treaty claim, WAI1909, was lodged in 2008, focusing on the harms of gambling to Māori and the Crown’s obligation to protect Māori wellbeing. It has yet to be heard. Dr Herd, who supported the claim, notes the current proposals, “challenge the government to honour the promises of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and protect the rights of its citizens, especially taiohi Māori and their whānau, hapū, iwi and hāpori” (Herd, 2021).

Pou Tangata and the Online Safety ILG Demand Action

Calls for the following immediate steps:

• Suspend the auction of online gambling licences pending proper Treaty consultation and legal review;
• Commission an urgent assessment of the legislative gaps and public health risks, particularly for taiohi Māori;
• Prioritise the hearing of WAI1909 before any further changes to gambling regulation are made;
• Mandate community reinvestment from any online gambling profits that affect whānau Māori.

“This Government is auctioning our whānau into harm,” said Papa. “We demand transparency. We demand accountability. And we demand that our rangatahi are not sacrificed for offshore profit under the false promise of a ‘regulated market’.”

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