Things are getting extremely serious for Star Entertainment Group after a few days ago the company was hit with regulatory fines worth AU$100 million as a result of some “major failures” at its casino venues. As part of the regulatory enforcement measures, a special manager has been appointed to oversee the company’s operations in the state of Queensland.
Star Entertainment has also been given a period of 12 months to get its business in order. If the casino does not manage to do so, it will have the licence for its Queensland casino temporarily suspended.
The Australian gambling giant also has 12 months to pay the fines totalling AU$100 million. According to reports, the operator generated AU$1.53 billion in the 2021/2022 fiscal year.
Shannon Fentiman, the Attorney-General of the state, officially unveiled the penalties on December 9th – just a couple of months after she found that the Australian gambling giant was unfit to hold a casino operating permit in Queensland following an independent review carried out by Robert Gotterson, a former Court of Appeal judge. As she noted, the implementation of the monetary penalties and the appointment of the special manager were sending a clear message to the industry that no criminal and unlawful behaviour will be tolerated in casino venues across the state.
Ms Fentiman explained that the aforementioned penalties have been carefully taken into consideration after the damning findings of Robert Gotterson’s review and the responses received by the company during the show-cause process. Queensland’s Attorney-General said that the disciplinary actions are aimed to establish a balance between the rules and the way the company operates its business.
Star Entertainment Could Have Its Queen’s Wharf Casino Licence Suspended
As mentioned above, the casino licences held by the casino in Queensland – for The Star Gold Coast and Treasury Brisbane – are set to be suspended for a period of 90 days. That regulatory action, however, has been deferred until December 1st, 2023.
Ms Fentiman explained that the aforementioned delay is set to provide Star Entertainment with the chance to make things right in its operations and management, saying that if satisfactory progress is made by the gambling giant, she and the independent special manager could decide to put off or rescind the suspension.
Star is also a major supporter of the development of the AU$3.6-billion Queen’s Wharf casino, which is still under construction. Queensland’s Attorney-General shared that no show-cause was issued to the licence holder for the Queen’s Wharf casino because the facility is not operational but if Star Entertainment is eventually found unfit by the time the company wants the casino to start operation, the authorities will place significant additional conditions on its operating permit.
Nicholas Weeks – who has been appointed as manager of Star Entertainment’s casino licence in Sydney – has also been installed as special manager of the company’s business in the state of Queensland. The company will be forced to pay the bill for the cost of the special manager’s services.
- Author
Olivia Cole
