Canada Sports Betting Bill Set to Fail

The move to legalise single event sports betting in Canada seems to have failed. However, the politicians who have been trying to push it through appear keen to give it another go in the future.

The apparent failure of the controversial bill follows on from a huge amount of lobbying and debate and the Senate sponsor behind it, Bob Runciman, seems resigned to waiting for the next parliamentary session in order to try again. 

The controversy began in earnest when the proposed bill was waved through the House last year with almost indecent haste, with the Canadian Gaming Association being the only witness in less than an hour’s worth of debating. After this, senators from both the Liberal and Conservative factions raised concerns about the manner in which it was unanimously passed.  

In fact, at the end of 2012 some MPs who are opposed to the idea said that the leaders of the House had decided to stifle debate on the subject.

Not Enough Time

Runciman has now admitted that so many senators are against the plan that there “just isn’t enough time” to try and push it through. He added that it is now so heavily disliked that there is little chance of it being well received.

An MP trying to help its chances is Brain Masse and he said that the 38 redundancies in Caesars Windor Casino in recent times is a reason why it should be given a chance to succeed. He and Runciman believe that this type of betting could bring in a lot of money for casino in Canada, as a lot of Canadians already take part in bets like this online.