the general impression is that too many off- course betting centres have been set up too quickly, and that the Government is seen to have been encouraging the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club to expand the number of such centres for the purpose of raising more revenue. Although there is no strong adverse reaction to the current state of affairs, further
expansion in the number of off-course betting centres is unlikely to be well received by the public;
even though many existing forms of legal gambling have been accepted as recreation, there are strong feelings that gambling activities are
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unsuitable for young people and children who should be prohibited from participating in any forms of gambling.
Although the HAD assessment was conducted in April 1978, it is felt that the findings still remain generally valid. Gambling is a highly controversial topic and there is, as yet, a certain degree of hypocrisy, especially among the more tradi- tional sector, in approaching the subject. Whilst the public are much more tolerant about betting on horse racing and Mark Six lottery than in, say, 1973, and the punters generally welcome the easy availability of legal outlets for placing of bets, the possi- bility of strong emotional reaction fanned up by media criticism, as was in the case of late 1977 and early 1978, should not be overlooked.
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In view of the substantial reduction in illegal gambling (paragraphs 3-8), the existence of ample legal betting-facilities to which illegal betting can be diverted (paragraphs 9-12), and the likelihood of public criticism of the Government for encouraging the gambling habit through further liberalisation moves (paragraphs 13-15), it is considered that the opportunity for lawful gambling should not be further extended except where a cogent need for such an opportunity has been established. However, so long as Government's objective remains to divert unlawful gambling into lawful channels, provision should be made for more alternative lawful outlets in order to remove any opportunity for syndicated corruption, Perl, den
Off-course Betting Centres
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On 9th October 1973, after considering memorandum XCC(73)26, the Council advised and the Governor ordered, inter. alia, that:
CONFIDENTIAL
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