Gambling and corporate social responsibility (CSR) : re-defining industry and state roles on duty of care, host responsibility and risk management

During the 1990s, states embraced legalised gambling as a means of supplementing state revenue. But gaming machines (EGMs, pokies, VLTs, Slots) have become increasingly controversial in countries such as Australia, Canada and New Zealand, which experienced unprecedented roll-out of gaming machines in casino and community settings; alongside revenue windfalls for both governments and the gambling industry. Governments have recognised that gambling results in a range of social and economic harms and, similar to tobacco and alcohol, have introduced public policies predicated on harm minimisation. Yet despite these, gaming losses have continued to climb in most jurisdictions, along with concerns about gambling-related harms. The first part of this article discusses an emerging debate in Ontario Canada, that draws parallels between host responsibility in alcohol and gambling venues. In Canada, where government owns and operates the gaming industry, this debate prompts important questions on the role of the state, duty of care and regulation ‘in the public interest’ and on CSR, host responsibility and consumer protection. This prompts the question: Do governments owe a duty of care to gamblers?

The article then discusses three domains of accumulating research evidence to inform questions raised in the Ontario debate: evidence that visible behavioural indicators can be used with high confidence to identify problem gamblers on-site in venues as they gamble; new systems using player tracking and loyalty data that can provide management with high precision identification of problem gamblers and associated risk (for protective interventions); and research on technological design features of new generation gaming products in interaction with players, that shows how EGM machines can be the site for monitoring/protecting players. We then canvass some leading international jurisdictions on gambling policy CSR and consumer protection.

In light of this new research, we ask whether the risk of legal liability poses a tipping point for more interventionist public policy responses by both the state and industry. This includes a proactive role for the state in re-regulating the gambling industry/products; instituting new forms of gaming machine product control/protection; and reinforcing corporate social responsibility (CSR) and host responsibility obligations on gambling providers – beyond self-regulatory codes. We argue the ground is shifting, there is new evidence to inform public policy and government regulation and there are new pressures on gambling providers and regulators to avail themselves of the new technology – or risk litigation

Environmental art and the production of publics : responding to environmental change

Environmental crises around the world have inspired an outpour of creative response. As the effects of climate change increasingly manifest, environmental! art is being politically and pedagogically mobilised for ameliorative strategies. The rubric that instrumentalist, techno-scientific approaches to environmental stress (and attendant social distress) cannot solely provide solutions to this challenge has found increasing acceptance. The concern of this paper, however, is the limited understanding of public art's capacity that is perpetuated bv certain trends in environmental art in which the work is charged with communicative responsibility,. Connected to the representational and instructive traditions of public art, this tendency is further informed by the influence of the 'information-deficit model' in environmental conmunication research: a concept that asserts a straightforward connection between information provision, indiyidual awareness and collective action on a concern. The idea that public art can function as a conduit for knowledge,.which in turn will inspire new moral positions and behaviours, absents the art work from the process of knowledge-making and the production of conditons that enable new practice. Arguing for a revised approach to the environmental possibilities of public art, this paper will propose that in thinking aboutl environmental transformation as essentially unrepresentable, a dfferent mode of public engagement with the issue is enabled.

Reinvigorating the public sphere : the role of voluntary associations

This thesis examines the key question: can voluntary associations enhance democracy? It tests critical claims made by Habermas and others that voluntary associations have the potential to reinvigorate a public sphere in a state of atrophy. The thesis outlines the major theoretical arguments pertaining to these areas and then presents the results of empirical work within voluntary organisations. Specifically the thesis: Critically examines the concept of the public sphere, being a sphere between the state and civil society and investigates why theorists have advocated voluntary associations, claimed to be the core institutions of civil society, as sites where democratic ideals can be secured; Goes on to examine the concept of civil society and reviews the recent literature that has attempted to define and analyse the role of voluntary associations in contemporary society; Tests empirically the normative ideals that have been advocated on behalf of voluntary associations through the presentation of data obtained using qualitative methodology. The analysis of the data collected during interviews with key employees and members of six voluntary associations in Melbourne, Australia allows for a more informed knowledge regarding the key concepts and themes of the thesis. The thesis ends by directly addressing the following points: whether or not the public sphere is in a state of atrophy; the particular nature of voluntary associations contemporary engagement in the public sphere; and whether voluntary associations can indeed, be sites where democracy can be enhanced and democratic ideals be secured. It is concluded that voluntary associations operate within Habermasian public spheres, counterspheres, and postmodern public spheres and that unitary notions of the public sphere, such as those Habermas proposes, do not adequately explain voluntary associations engagement in the public sphere. Accordingly, it is concluded that voluntary associations have the potential to invigorate public spheres, though not in ways that many theorists writing on the subject suggest.

The perennial problem of police gratuities : public concerns, political optics, and an accountability ethos

Despite the perennial nature of the problem of gratuities in considerations of police ethics, many prior analyses of this issue have rested on anecdotal, piecemeal or hypothetical considerations.. This paper draws on a unique sample of actual complaint cases involving gratuities, providing evidence of a range of public concerns about the problem. Gratuities are analysed and contextualised by reference to the concept of conflict of interest, which draws attention to the potential for the performance of public duty to be tainted in fact or appearance. In either case, public trust in the integrity of the police is damaged, giving rise to "political optics" as a key problem with gratuities.  The paper argues that an accountability ethos must be developed to promote active responsibility and a preparedness to prioritise the public interest in policing.

Exploring the potential of knowledge brokering to enhance natural resource management : findings from the Catchment Knowledge Exchange project in Victoria

Despite significant efforts in natural resource management (NRM), the environmental condition of Victoria’s catchments is mostly ‘poor to moderate’, and continuing to decline in many places. NRM is a complex undertaking involving social, economic, and environmental objectives, across policy, research, and practice dimensions. It is therefore not easy to ensure that the knowledge required to underpin effective NRM is readily available to practitioners. Knowledge brokering is an emerging approach with the potential to improve knowledge sharing and exchange. While it has attracted attention in other areas of public interest (such as health and information technology), its potential in NRM has received relatively limited attention. This article reports on a Victorian knowledge brokering case study which was a major element in the Catchment Knowledge Exchange project. A key finding is that knowledge brokering is a role that is being undertaken informally, without proper acknowledgement or definition. This raises challenges for knowledge management in the context of NRM. We conclude that the ‘people’ component of knowledge brokering is the driving element, although organisational processes and information technologies are critical in enhancing the effectiveness of knowledge brokers. Demonstrating the benefits of knowledge brokering in terms of the ultimate measure of its contribution towards improving the condition of catchments remains a challenge.

Regulatory theory insights into the past, present and future of general purpose water accounting standard setting

Purpose – Accounting and water industry experts are developing general-purpose water accounting (GPWA) to report information about water and rights to water. The system has the potential to affect water policies, pricing and management, and investment and other decisions that are affected by GPWA report users' understanding of water risks faced by an entity. It may also affect financial returns to accounting and auditing firms and firms in water industries. In this paper the authors aim to examine the roles of the accounting profession, water industries and other stakeholders in governing GPWA. Recognising that the fate of GPWA depends partly upon regulatory power and economics, they seek to apply regulatory theories that explain financial accounting standards development to speculate about the national and international future of GPWA.

Design/methodology/approach – Official documents, internal Water Accounting Standards Board documents and unstructured interviews underpin the authors' analysis.

Findings – The authors speculate about the benefits that might accrue to various stakeholder groups from capturing the GPWA standard-setting process. They also suggest that internationally, water industries may dominate early GPWA standards development in the public interest and that regulatory capture by accounting or water industry professionals will not necessarily conflict with public interest benefits.

Practical implications – Accounting for water can affect allocations of environmental, economic, social and other resources; also, accounting and water industry professional standing and revenues. In this paper the authors identify factors influencing GPWA standards and standard-setting institutional arrangements, and thereby these resource allocations. The paper generates an awareness of GPWA's emergence and practical implications.

Originality/value – This is an early study to investigate water accounting standard-setting regulatory influences and their impact.

Overlapping forms of knowledge in environmental governance: comparing environmental policy workers' perceptions

Public sector environmental governance involves complex interactions between different forms of knowledge. Public sector reforms have important implications for environmental governance by changing the relationships between knowledge systems. By comparing the views of environmental policy workers the implications of public sector management reform for environmental governance are explored. The analysis presented highlights that environmental policy work is contested in ways that mainstream public sector management and environmental governance literature often overlook. It is concluded that the adequacy of the conceptual frameworks informing public sector environmental reform are unclear, as are the implications of such reforms for effective environmental governance.

Legislation to protect whistle-blowers in Victoria

Protection afforded to whistleblowers under Victoria's Whistleblower Protection Act - benefits and costs of providing protection - types of disclosures that are protected and people who can claim protection under the Act - determining if a matter involves a public interest disclosure - investigation of disclosures by the Ombudsman, and other public bodies - action upon completion of an investigation - protection afforded to the Ombudsman.

Judicial responses to the protected confidential communications legislation in Australia

The article examines the background, aims and scope of recent legislation enacted in New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia to protect from disclosure in court of "confidential communications" generated in the context of counselling persons who allege that they were victims of sexual offences. In drafting the "confidential communications" legislation, the legislators undertook a difficult task of balancing the public interest in therapeutic confidentiality that would encourage victims of sexual assaults to report these offences and seek psychological and psychiatric care on the one hand, and the public interest in fairness of the trial, which may be prejudiced by exclusion of evidence pertinent to the forensic process on the other. In South Australia this task was fulfilled with greater success than in New South Wales and Victoria.

So far so good? : A critical evaluation of racial vilification laws in Australia

Problems with Australia's racial vilification laws - s 18C of the Commonwealth's Racial Discrimination Act - free speech and public interest defences under the Racial Discrimination Act as well as State and Territory racial vilification laws - impact of free speech cases on the content of the racial vilification defences.

Mad hatter's corporate tea party

This paper aims to provide an insight into the corporate greed and consequent corporate collapses of companies such as HIH, One.Tel and Harris Scarfe in Australia, while concurrently, Enron, WorldCom and other companies were attracting the attention of the accounting profession, the regulators and the general public in the USA. It is argued that the rise in economic rationalism and the related increased materialism of both the public and company directors and managers, fed the corporate excesses that resulted in spectacular corporate collapses, including one of the world’s largest accounting firms. The opportunistic behaviour of directors, and managers and the lack of transparency and integrity in corporations, was compounded by the failure of the corporate watch-dogs, such as auditors and regulators, to protect the public interest. If the history of bad corporate behaviour is not to be repeated, the religion of materialism needs to be recognised and addressed, to ensure any corporate governance reforms proposed for the future will be effective.

Local content policy in the Australian television industry

This paper examines the impact and effectiveness of the local content scheme currently operating in the Australian Television industry. The television industry is a service industry with public good aspects. Public interest arguments have traditionally been used to support the retention (and indeed expansion) of the local content scheme since it was first introduced in 1961. These objectives have included the promotion of Australian culture, the desire to ensure a diversity of views may be heard and that diverse interests may be catered for when preferences cannot be directly gauged.

The problems associated with defining what constitutes "Australian" content are examined along with the costs and effectiveness of the local content scheme in meeting public interest concerns. The paper finds that the local content scheme has become part of a package of protection in the broadcasting industry that has resulted in valuable television licences and powerful and entrenched interests. It also shows that the local content scheme is not particularly effective in meeting it's objectives, and will become increasingly irrelevant in the light of rapidly changing technology. Other methods of meeting public objectives are suggested.

Self-regulation: a risky option for developing countries? The case of Bangladesh

In recent years, the command and control type of government regulation is giving way to self- regulatory approaches in which industry sectors are responsible for controlling the conduct of their own members. Although self-regulatory approaches are increasingly being adopted with the objective of both improving the rate of compliance and reducing costs in developed countries, this paper argues that this might be a risky option. Developing countries often do not have adequate levels of standards of efficiency, effective legal regulatory frameworks, institutional safeguards and public awareness. Using the Bangladesh agriculture sector as an exemplar, this paper investigates the prospects of self-regulation of small businesses trading in agricultural inputs as a possible remedy for the recent problems associated with the sale of contaminated inputs to the farmers. The paper argues that self-regulation does not develop and is not sustained  independently of the context in which business operates. Importantly, the context includes the legal infrastructure created by the state and the enforcement effort imposed by the state. In the absence of effective state intervention in the public interest, institutional safeguards and public awareness, private entrepreneurs are less constrained to behave in the public interest and in conformity with the objectives of self-regulation. The findings of this paper provide significant implications for addressing the issue of effective regulation in developing countries.

The Australian auditing and assurance standards board after the implementation of CLERP 9

This paper traces the establishment of the reconstituted Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (AUASB) as a result of the CLERP (Audit Reform and Corporate Disclosure) Act 2004, and its progress in developing auditing standards that are "in the public interest". The paper canvasses the composition of the AUASB, its transparency and due process, its relationship with the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board and the Financial Reporting Council, and its resourcing and attitude to researching issues of importance in auditing. The paper discusses methods that might be used to provide evidence of the efficacy of the reforms to auditing standard-setting.

Intelligent financial news digest system

We present an agent-based system Intelligent Financial News Digest System (IFNDS) for analyzing online financial news articles and associated material. The system can abstract, synthesize, digest, and classify the contents, and assesses whether the report is favorable to any company discussed in the reports. It integrates artificial intelligence technologies including traditional information retrieval and extraction techniques for the news analysis. It makes use of keyword statistics and backpropagation training data to identify companies named in reportage whether it is, evaluatively speaking, positive, negative or neutral. The system would be of use to media such as clipping services, media management, advertising, public relations, public interest, and e-commerce professionals and government non-governmental bodies interested in monitoring the media profiles of corporations, products, and issues.