Bill C-218 Update & Ontario iGaming Consultations

Bill C-218 / Sports Betting Update

After five days of hearings and approximately 30 witnesses testifying before the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights in favour of Bill C-218, the process is drawing to a close. We expect final debate to take place in the House of Commons during the week of April 19, 2021.

Many organizations have submitted briefs which are available to view/download, alongside witness testimony from the hearings.

We will continue to provide you with updates as Bill C-218 returns to the House.

Ontario iGaming Consultations Underway

The Ministry of Finance’s iGaming consultations are underway. The discussion paper contains the questions that the government is seeking feedback on. A reminder that all submission are due by April 16, 2021.

We expect the AGCO to release its draft iGaming standards by the end of March and undertake a similar feedback process.

This webinar will examine the role of training in the success of gaming organizations in Canada, including regulatorily required training and necessary job skills training as Canada looks to expand iGaming and legalize single-event sports betting.

Speaker: Charles Harper, GM, Head of North America, iGaming Academy
Moderator: Paul Burns, President & CEO, CGA

CGA Advocates for CEWS Extension

Last March, Canada’s gaming industry, in an unprecedented move, shut down its land-based facilities to protect employees and customers from COVID-19. One year later, we are still treading water, as many employees have not returned to work and casinos remain closed or only partially open.

The Canadian Employment Wage Support (CEWS) program has benefited many companies across the country. Unfortunately, private sector casino operators and bingo hall owners across Canada have not been able to access the program as they have limited revenues at this time and have been preserving resources to prepare for reopening.

The CGA is recommending that the CEWS be extended and made available to organizations until the end of 2021 to provide support as they bring back employees and work to restore their businesses. Each province will have different opening dates for different sectors. Providing this assurance to our industry that they will have access to the CEWS program until the end of this year will enable them to have certainty in planning and in bringing workers back.

BCGEU collaborated with Gateway Casinos & Entertainment, which owns several properties in British Columbia, on a video to highlight the plight of the province’s casino industry. It is the only jurisdiction in North America not to reopen its casinos in the past year.

We will continue to advocate with the Federal government on behalf of our industry. In conjunction with organizations in the hospitality and tourism sectors we are reaching out MPs and Ministers to voice our need for a CEWS extension.

The CGA has organized a roundtable on March 31, 2021 with Conservative MP Tony Baldinelli, Special Advisor to Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole for Tourism Recovery. If you are interested in participating, please contact the CGA. Stay tuned for more updates.

Vendor Solutions for the Canadian Gaming Industry

As the industry continues to work to reopen facilities and deliver the safest environments for customers, the CGA remains in contact with vendors with unique solutions designed to assist with those efforts. Please check them out.

Victory Chip 
A UVC LED casino chip decontaminator developed by gaming industry professional Damien De Roux and Lind Equipment in Ontario. It’s a small portable unit measuring 14 inches square.

Hypocln 
A cleaning product that kills viruses and bacteria on surfaces without using harmful chemicals. Hypocln is hypochlorous acid, which is made using state-of-the-art Electrolyzed Water Technology, combining low levels of electricity, salt and tap water through a process called electrolysis, creating a “Salt-Water Biocide”.

Produced in Canada and the USA, approved by Health Canada, USDA, EPA & FDA, and on the NLIST as COVID-19 approved.

For more information contact Shawn Parker

Tiitan HST
Titan HST provides an end-to-end fully encrypted, 2-way emergency communication platform for employees and guests while on premises that works even when the power is out, and networks are down. Our ability to mitigate Covid on 4-levels – Health Pre-Screening / 2-level contact tracing / population density monitoring /sanitization confirmation.  It can work within your existing branded customer app.

For more information contact Jennifer Gillespie