Mr Chairman, thank you very much. While I know that maiden speeches have become fairly routine occurrences here, I must begin by saying what an absolute honour it is for me to speak in this House today.
Ndiyavuya ukuba lapha namhlanje. [I am happy to be here today.]
As a university student, I would often come here and sit in the gallery in the afternoons after my classes and watch as some of the greatest debates of our democracy played out in this Chamber. Now, as a member of this House, friends and family often ask me why on earth I would want to go into something as dirty and nasty as politics. It is a cynicism that I am sure many of us are familiar with. It is born of decades of disappointment, nourished by divisive politics and perpetuated by too many broken promises.
I believe in another, much better kind of politics, one which adheres to our country's founding democratic principles, one which takes seriously the oath of office that all of us swore - to defend and uphold the Constitution - one that believes that this country is ours to make or to break and that those things that bind us together are far greater than those things or, indeed, those people who seek to drive us apart. I have seen believers in this kind of politics on both sides of the House.
In the remaining two years of our term, let us exemplify that tradition. This is the most important democratic institution in our country and our words and actions here should serve as an example to those we represent. May we have many more defining historic debates in this House and, whatever our differences, may we always remember what we have in common - a deep love for the country we serve.
I turn to the specific topic at hand. The committee I serve on had very few points of disagreement in the drafting of our report. All of us recognise that the proliferation of gambling without appropriately strict regulation poses serious socioeconomic risks to all South Africans and especially poor South Africans. We all agreed on the principle of destination gambling, but we also heard evidence that online gambling is very popular and common in South Africa. It makes no economic sense whatsoever to continue to ban it. The only effect of such a policy is to send more jobs and more money out of South Africa and receive no tax income from the industry. It is therefore cause for cautious celebration that the committee recommended the unbanning of on-line gambling, subject to very careful and firm regulation to protect the consumers of gambling, which the industry calls "punters".
We also agreed, as the hon Fubbs has said, on some wide-ranging reforms to the way in which the National Lottery is run. The National Lotto is an organisation that should work for the poor. Its abuse for politics is exactly the kind of conduct that erodes public faith. We recommended the establishment of an entirely separate and independent grant-making body, removing all grant-making powers from the ambit of the board. We have recommended much more rigorous accountability for the spending of lotto grants, to avoid fiascos like the World Festival of Youth from ever occurring again. We have recommended that all major lotto winners undergo mandatory financial counselling to assist with managing their newfound fortunes.
Members of the committee will know that my biggest concern was around consumer protection, ensuring that punters can make a fully informed decision knowing all the risks and costs involved. If we can get the legislation right, South Africa will be a world leader in gambling consumer protection, with the odds of winning - which members must know are incredibly small - prominently displayed on all slot machines and requiring all gambling advertising to carry similar warnings.
In my constituency of greater Philippi here in Cape Town, there are several dozen limited pay-out machines, or LPMs. They are essentially more compact but far more socially damaging versions of traditional slots. They are located mainly in taverns, shebeens and nightclubs, and they are the most destructive and most harmful form of all gambling to the poor because of their ease of access, seemingly cheap cost and alluring prize money. Many poor South Africans gamble away their weekly wages at LPMs. LPMs are like a training school for gambling addiction and the law does not adequately protect punters from the dangerous social side effects of LPMs. Their current location inside residential areas also contradicts the policy consensus towards destination gambling. I, for one, do not want a single additional LPM in my constituency and would gladly see them all removed. We should all therefore welcome the recommendation by the committee to stop the further roll-out of LPMs, pending review of the policy regarding their location.
There are many other praiseworthy recommendations in the report, which we have now submitted to the Department of Trade and Industry. My hope, hon Minister Davies, is that the department soon sends draft legislation to this House that we can debate, amend and then pass to give effect to our recommendations and protect South Africa's punters. [Applause.]