Star Entertainment’s reprieve from looming suspension after deemed unsuitable to hold licences

Gambling giant Star Entertainment has won a reprieve from a looming potential suspension after it was deemed unsuitable to hold casino licenses in Queensland.

Embattled gambling giant Star Entertainment has been handed six extra months to prove to the Queensland Government it is getting its house in order, after authorities approved a blueprint to rehabilitation.

Star, which operates two casinos in Queensland at the Gold Coast in Brisbane, was deemed unsuitable to hold licences in the state in the aftermath of a damning inquiry into the company.

It was originally given a year, until December 1, 2023, to get its house in order or face financially catastrophic 90-day suspension of its licence.

The Star operates casinos in Brisbane and The Gold Coast.

Attorney-General Yvette D’Ath on Friday confirmed she had deferred the deadline to May 31, 2024 at which stage the looming suspension order could be enforced, deferred again, or revoked.

It will depend on Star proving to the state government adequate progress toward significant reform, with the company to now embark on implementing a remediation plan — made up of 640 milestones and 100 initiatives.

The term of a special manager appointed to watch over Star’s operation has also been extended for a further 12 months, until December 8, 2024.

The inquiry, headed by former Court of Appeal justice Robert Gotterson KC, found Star had been “insufficiently transparent” with the Queensland regulator, “actively encouraged” banned people to gamble in the state and was “seriously deficient” in preventing money laundering.

The then Attorney-General Shannon Fentiman slammed Star at the time for having a “one-eyed focus on profit”.

Ms D’Ath, on Friday, said there had “certainly” been evidence Star was starting to change from the top down.

“But it is still very early days, this remediation plan is really the start of their work, not the end,” she said.

“The remediation plan has taken many months to develop, and will really drive the reform I now expect to see coming out of there.”

Ms D’Ath confirmed separate investigations into the Queens’ Wharf casino, which Star will run by transferring its Brisbane licence, are ongoing.

The Office of Liquor and Gaming were tasked with looking into key shareholder Chow Tai Fook’s suitability to hold a casino licence.

Attorney-General Yvette D'Ath. File picture

Star Entertainment chief executive Robbie Cooke said approval of the remediation plan was “an important step on our path to returning to suitability in Queensland”.

“At the same time, we are fully aware that successful implantation of the remediation plan will require the utmost rigour and discipline,” he said.

“We need to regain the trust and confidence of all our stakeholders and communities and continue to have an unwavering focus on transformation.

“That comes from a clear understanding that holding casino licences is a privilege, not a right.”

A dozen recommendations had been borne from the report to modernise the state’s nearly 40-year-old casino control laws and bring in a raft of gambling-harm minimisation measures.

These include significant new controls on how much time and money punters can spend on the pokies, and bringing in “cashless” cards linked to a person’s identification if they want to gamble more than $1000.

Legislation to restrict how much time and money punters can spend on the pokies and stopping the use of cash for bets worth more than $1000 were introduced to parliament in October.