Daily Archives: June 22, 2017

Fraudulent Conveyance Rules May Pave Way for Sears Bankruptcy in July – Barron’s

Posted: June 22, 2017 at 5:43 am


Chain Store Age
Fraudulent Conveyance Rules May Pave Way for Sears Bankruptcy in July
Barron's
It's no secret that Sears Holdings (SHLD) is considered at risk of bankruptcy. Moody's gives it a Caa2 rating, seeing substantial risks. Fitch Ratings wrote just last week: While retail remains the sector to watch, the default rate is highly dependent ...
Sears Canada Stock Plunges On Report Of Planning To Seek Bankruptcy ProtectionNasdaq
Sears Canada Stock Plummets on Bankruptcy RumorsWWD
Canadian retailer prepares for bankruptcyChain Store Age
Huffington Post Canada -CBC.ca
all 25 news articles »

See the original post:

Fraudulent Conveyance Rules May Pave Way for Sears Bankruptcy in July - Barron's

Posted in Bankruptcy | Comments Off on Fraudulent Conveyance Rules May Pave Way for Sears Bankruptcy in July – Barron’s

Use of harmful chemicals for fish preservation harmful to consumers … – BusinessGhana

Posted: at 5:43 am

Mrs Elizabeth Naa Afoley Quaye, Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development, has warned fishmongers using Monosodium Glutamate to process expired fishes to halt the practice since it is harmful to human health.

She said fishmongers use monosodium glutamate on expired fish especially tilapia to let it look glossy to attract potential buyers.

The Sector Minister gave the warning at a Stakeholders Meeting on Fisheries Law Enforcement in Accra, on Tuesday, to deliberate on the best ways of halting unreported and unregulated fishing practices in the country

She said some fishmongers around the Volta Lake and other coastal communities had been buying rotten or expired fishes from some cold stores, the practice known in local parlance as Kodoso and used Monosodium Glutamate to make them attractive to potential buyers.

The Fisheries Minister said the indiscriminate use of explosives, chemicals, under-sized fishing nets, light fishing and other aggregating devices for fishing would collapse the fisheries sector if serious and pragmatic measures were not taken to address the menace.

The continuous use of various chemicals to harvest fish in the artisanal sector has serious health consequences for consumers.

"The practice of using chemicals is seriously wiping out our fishery resources because many of the poisoned fishes that are not harvested eventually rot at the bottom of the sea, and this pollute the environment.

This she explained if not stopped would lead to the total collapse of the fishery industry.

She warned that individuals or fishers who would be caught in any form of illegal fishing practices would have a brush with the law.

Mrs Quaye promised to subsidise fishing nets to fishermen and canoe owners as part of efforts to enhance their work.

She also entreated all owners of seized fishing vessels to report to the Ministry for identification and collection and warned them not to indulge in any illegal fishing practices again.

The Minister said under the Collaboratory Fisheries Management, fishermen have been given the authority to regulate fishing activities in their respective areas and to deal with people practising illegal fishing methods.

She noted that light fishing affected the reproductive system of the fishes and changed the temperature of the water body and, thus, made the water uncomfortable for habitation by marine life.

She explained that the current exploitation rate of the fisheries resources was not sustainable and urged all stakeholders in the fisheries industry to collaborate to stamp out unreported and unregulated fishing practices.

The Sector Minister said that the collapse of the fishery industry would have grave consequences on the national economy such as job losses, malnutrition and other negative socio-economic repercussions that would be difficult to quantify.

In the efforts to arrest and reverse the situation, the Minister said, her outfit had developed a comprehensive Fisheries Management Plan to address the challenge.

She mentioned some key measures like the effective enforcement of Fisheries legislation, improving information on fisheries biology and stock assessment to support the re-building strategy and reducing the current levels of fishing efforts and capacity.

Other measures include protecting marine habitat to conserve biodiversity and product certification and reducing post-harvest losses.

Mrs Quaye advocated the need for fishers to collaborate with the Fisheries Law Enforcement Unit to clamp down on "galamsey in the fishing sector" for sustainable fishery conservation.

Watch Committee members in Prampram in the Greater Accra Region, testified that, their vigilance against light fishing in the area, had yielded positive outcomes and enjoying bumper catch.

They suggested that the Ministry should replicate the setting up of such committees in other coastal communities, to protect marine life in the sea and other water bodies

The stakeholders meeting concluded ended with major players in the fishing industry agreeing that light fishing, use of -chemicals, under-sized fishing nets and bamboo for fishing should be barred.

Ghana has been battling light fishing for a number of years now and consensus reached by the stakeholders would help in bringing an end to all forms of illegal fishing practices in the country.

Visit link:

Use of harmful chemicals for fish preservation harmful to consumers ... - BusinessGhana

Posted in Socio-economic Collapse | Comments Off on Use of harmful chemicals for fish preservation harmful to consumers … – BusinessGhana

Rants and raves – The Augusta Chronicle

Posted: at 5:42 am

Submit a Rant or Rave

Its good to see that the investigation on the Russian interference is moving forward. We need the truth to finally be out about Trump supporters who want back doors and other hidden communications with Russians to avoid legal penalties.

It is clear that the president is attempting to erase all of President Obamas achievements. What he cant erase is what we are all seeing about him. When this investigation is over, he will be remembered, but not with reverence. He and Richard Nixon will stand alone all by themselves. What a sad, vindictive, vicious man.

Why on Earth would someone ex-pect that American military should go after terrorists worldwide? The cowboying into other territories without proper body armor and tank protection and other expensive military equipment needed against IEDs is what cost the lives and limbs and other harms to our military less than two decades ago.

Candidate Trump stated he could shoot someone on Fifth Avenue and get away with it. Did he give people the incentive to follow suit?

Regarding John Coles cartoon, June 15 enough with the beheading. Cartoons are OK, but we need civility in them also.

Lets see an accounting of all those millions spent so far by the Trump family alone in their various travels, especially during the weekends. They bellyached so much about what was spent by other presidents on so-called vacation times, but Im sure the Trumps have outspent them in these past few months.

I see Ivanka Trump got permission to sell even more things in China. Are they made by Chinese or American companies?

I think comedian Adam Conover summed up our current political situation perfectly last year: There is a huge difference between me and those people. They are wrong, whereas I am right.

Its about our government making a better deal with Cuba: Make a better deal with Cuba so that money does not go to their government, where they control everything including oppression of the Cuban people.

Follow this link:

Rants and raves - The Augusta Chronicle

Posted in Government Oppression | Comments Off on Rants and raves – The Augusta Chronicle

As IS withdraws, Mosul residents face harsh conditions and seek government aid – i24NEWS (press release) (registration)

Posted: at 5:42 am

One resident of the war-torn Iraqi city tells i24NEWS that he longs for the return of dictator Saddam Hussein

Eastern Mosul has come back to life, despite the ongoing battle in the west of the city between so-called Islamic State fighters and Iraqi government forces.

It is a welcome beginning of normality for residents, but it is still far from what was once Iraq's second largest city.

Less than six months after Iraqi forces pushed IS militants out of this part of the city, huge efforts are going into rebuilding it. Municipal workers and builders are laboring day and night, trying to restore electricity and pave the streets.

In the shadow of destruction - buildings riddled with bullets, others flattened to the ground - construction workers are twisting steel and mixing concrete in an attempt to help the city rise again.

The old market is bustling with people, the shops full of goods and the sidewalks are bustling with street vendors and shoppers looking for a bargain.

One Mosul shopkeeper, Haj Ahmad Abu Hakam, told i24NEWS that he reopened his shop soon after the Islamic State left.

It is much better, under the Islamic State the situation was bad but now thank God it's better, there are more work opportunities available, and many people who left are coming back, Abu Hakam said.

But few people in the city are actually carrying bags full of goods. Abu Omar, a displaced person from west Mosul, said that the citizens are living off of handouts and that life is a struggle.

Since we fled, we only received sugar and cooking oil once and we paid for it. We are living on handouts, what people give us," Abu Omar said. "We dont pay rent, the owner lets me and my family live there for free. There is security but life is hard and is expensive.

Despite promises by officials, living conditions are only slowly improving.

Sabah Abu Faisal, who was displaced from the West side of Mosul due to the fighting, stated that he believes he was deceived by the new Iraqi authority.

Im sorry but they are all liars, they have no credibility, they act just in front of the camera, no food supplies, Ive been here for three months and I did not receive anything from them," Abu Faisal said.

Under a huge billboard of Kathem Asaher, the Arab world's most famous singer with the words love has arrived, residents of east Mosul are complaining about their representatives and there is no love for the government. Many have called for the old government to return like Mosul resident Abu Ali, who longs for the days of late Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein.

Saddam was a dictator and they brought us democracy. We dont want democracy. Take us back to dictatorship. Take us back to the oppression of Saddam - we dont want democracy.

Abu Ali is uncertain about the future as many around him are unhappy with the lack of electricity, the shortage of water and the scarcity of jobs.

Another sensitive issue in the city is the presence of "collaborators" who reportedly helped IS militants as well as ex- IS fighters but Mosul resident Rafee Khoder Elias insisted that that situation is improving

Its good, its getting better ... 100 percent, with cooperation with the citizens its continuing to get better, God willing.

While on the other side of the Tigris River, in west Mosul, the fighting is fierce.

Iraqi government forces backed by a US-led coalition said they will soon be victorious there as well but, for the Iraqi government, the real battle is just beginning, and it's all about winning the hearts and minds of its own people.

Excerpt from:

As IS withdraws, Mosul residents face harsh conditions and seek government aid - i24NEWS (press release) (registration)

Posted in Government Oppression | Comments Off on As IS withdraws, Mosul residents face harsh conditions and seek government aid – i24NEWS (press release) (registration)

Jailed for calling Ugandan president a ‘pair of buttocks’, activist vows … – The Guardian

Posted: at 5:42 am

A few minutes into our interview at one of Kampalas hotels, Stella Nyanzis lawyer tells us the place is no longer safe for her and she needs to leave. She is constantly monitored by security agents these days, she says, which is perhaps not surprising as the academic and activist is one of the fiercest critics of the Ugandan government. But she is not about to back down.

Not even the 33 days she spent in the countrys maximum security Luzira womens prison for describing the president, Yoweri Museveni, as a pair of buttocks could change her stance.

My language will grow sharper if the government continues to oppress us, says Nyanzi, who was suspended from her job at Makerere University for abusing the first lady and education minister, Janet Museveni. Nyanzi called her a big-thighed cow with an empty brain.

On top of that, she has accused the Musevenis of raping the country and leaving millions of Ugandans in poverty during their three-decade rule.

I am a critic of government and I choose the words to use [carefully], she told the Guardian while out on bail.

If you are going to stand with the powerless against the oppression [by] the powerful, someone will not like it. That person is usually the powerful.

Nyanzi, who usually turns to Facebook to vent her wrath, was arrested in April and charged with cyber harassment for her criticism of the president. Her arrest followed an event for her campaign Pads4girlsUG, which is raising money to buy sanitary towels for girls who cant afford them. She started it after the first lady told parliament earlier this year that the government did not have money to fulfil her husbands election campaign pledge to provide free sanitary pads to schoolgirls.

At least 30% of teenage girls in Uganda miss school when they start having their periods.

The campaign has proved a success, with donations pouring in. Nyanzi wrote on Facebook that Pads4girls was her most powerful achievement of the past year.

Her arrest elicited widespread condemnation, with Human Rights Watch describing it as the most flagrant attack on free expression in many years and a vengeful use of Ugandas justice system to silence a government critic. She is currently barred from travelling out of the country.

A trained journalist turned researcher, Nyanzi describes herself as a lyricist, poetess, creative writer and analyst on a quest for good governance. Shes unflinching in her criticism of government and is unafraid to tackle taboos around sex and gender and stand up for LGBT rights.

Language is a tool and I refuse to be shut by anybody; we can listen to the rhetoric but also question, says Nyanzi, whose PhD research at the University of London focused on youth sexualities and sexual and reproductive health in the Gambia, a culturally conservative country like many other African states.

Her candid use of sexual innuendos and talk of sex has angered moralists but earned her the support of young people who view old beliefs as having no place in todays world.

Openly using words like penis or vagina is seen as immoral. Nyanzi is breaking those cultural beliefs, in a country where women are expected to be humble.

She stripped down to her underwear in protest when her boss at Makerere tried to evict her from the building. She told journalists then that stripping was the only remaining option for her grievances to be heard.

She likes to be called nalongo (a mother of twins which she is, along with an older daughter), which locally symbolises strength.

She said people pretend that sex is a taboo, but what do men discuss all the time? It is sex. So do the women when they are together, she says.

I stand with queer people and I may not necessarily be a lesbian but I know what it means to be marginalised because of my sexuality. It could be because I dont have sex, or it could be because I am a single mum, or because I just sleep around with so many men, she adds.

Yet such bold statements have led to accusations that she has mental health problems. The state tried to force her to be tested while in prison but she resisted. The state has also asked the court to compel her to be tested under the 1938 Mental Treatment Act. She filed a case against the government, opposing the testing.

They wanted to subject me to involuntary [mental] testing; I told them I have to volunteer myself. They cant just pick me and test, she says. What happens after testing you is that they detain you on the pretext that you are mentally ill. That means they want to kill whatever questioning power I have.

Although her arrest and detention appear designed to break her, she says the things they do to women in prison would not stop her.

Like telling us to undress before other [prisoners]; I laughed about it, she says.

Telling me to undress I undressed with pride and then turned the torture scheme into one of pleasure for other women.

She wrote last month that her prison experience strengthened my resolve to resist the Musevenis 31-year dictatorship.

Oh yes, [prison] purified my passionate disgust for the failed corrupt regime of [Museveni] when I was a prisoner, my brain was sharpened for the long struggle ahead. In prison, I lost all fear of the systems and organs that uphold the gun-based system of patronage that entrench this reign of terror and family rule, she said.

But when she was released on bail she looked frail and there were concerns about her health. I had malaria. Mosquito nets are not allowed into the prison rooms because of fear that women can strangle themselves.

I got a urinary tract infection because the toilets are bad. But also our pit latrine was full the first two weeks I was there. It took a rebellion for it to be emptied, she says.

Nyanzi is due back in court on Tuesday. There have been calls for the charges to be dropped. But whether they are or not, or whether shes returned to jail, it is unlikely the academic will ever willingly give up the fight.

As she wrote on Facebook to mark her 43rd birthday last week: As I start another year of my life, I am looking forward to the prospects there are for me. I am grabbing this apple of my life, taking huge tasty bites out of it.

Read this article:

Jailed for calling Ugandan president a 'pair of buttocks', activist vows ... - The Guardian

Posted in Government Oppression | Comments Off on Jailed for calling Ugandan president a ‘pair of buttocks’, activist vows … – The Guardian

No additional funds for war on drugs – The Indian Express

Posted: at 5:41 am

Written by Adil Akhzer | Chandigarh | Published:June 22, 2017 11:34 am

The Punjab government that promised eradication of drug menace to be on top of its agenda did not allocate any additional funds in its maiden budget worth Rs 1.18 lakh crore presented on Tuesday. Other than an amount of Rs 50 crore for establishment of primary rural rehabilitation and drug de-addiction centres in the state, the template of the budget set aside for health was nothing different than the one presented last year by the SAD-BJP government.

The government allocated Rs 1,358 crore for medical and public health in this fiscal year, which is 14.21 per cent higher than the allocations made the previous year. The allocation had nothing for fighting drugs.

Punjabs Finance Minister Manpreet Badal, during his budget speech on Tuesday said to restore the health of all the citizens of Punjab, while some new initiatives are being taken, some of the existing would be reinforced and remodelled to address the problem in a focused manner.

The previous government, in the last budget, had allocated funds for the similar heads. Then, the government had allocated Rs 708 crore for providing affordable and accountable health care services to the community, Rs 36 crore for ambulance services, Rs 25 crore for treatment of cancer patients, Rs 100 crore for medical insurance for the poor people, and Rs 150 crore for creation of cancer and drug de-addiction treatment infrastructure.

And on Tuesday, when Manpreet Badal presented his budget, he had almost similar things in the health sector. Of the allocated Rs 1,358 crore, Rs 777 crore were allocated for providing affordable and accountable health care services to the community under National Health Mission Programme, Rs 38 crore for providing emergency response services (108-Ambulance Services), medical helpline (104) in the State, Rs 30 crore for treatment of cancer patients under CM Cancer Relief Fund, Rs 100 crore for Universal Health Insurance for the under privileged people, Rs 50 crore for the creation of cancer and drug de-addiction treatment infrastructure, Rs 50 crore for the establishment of primary rural rehabilitation & drug de-addiction centres in the state and Rs 50 crore for tertiary care cancer centre.

Badal said new tertiary-level infrastructure was being created in the field of cancer and drug de-addiction in the state medical colleges. For cancer patients, he said tertiary care centres were being set up at the cost of Rs 50 crore in Fazilka and Hoshiarpur districts.

Badal also said a new medical college would be set up at SAS Nagar (Mohali) with an additional outlay of Rs 10 crore in 2017-18. Rs 100 crore has been provided for upgradation of infrastructure in the Government Medical College and Hospital, Patiala.

The government has planned to transform approximately 3,000 centres in rural and urban areas as Health & Wellness Clinics which will ensure preventive as well as limited curative services, he said.

Reacting to the budget, States Health Minister Brahm Mohindra told The Indian Express that he will set the priority about funds usage in the health sector, as per the needs of the people of Punjab.

For all the latest India News, download Indian Express App

Visit link:

No additional funds for war on drugs - The Indian Express

Posted in War On Drugs | Comments Off on No additional funds for war on drugs – The Indian Express

Hong Kong’s Gambling Empire Is Losing Horsepower – Bloomberg – Bloomberg

Posted: at 5:41 am

Before Hong Kongs return to Chinese rule, Communist leader Deng Xiaopinghad a reassuring message for those worried about the departure of the British from the capitalist enclave. Dont fret, the architect of the handover said: Horses will still run, stocks will still sizzle, dancers will still dance.

The dancing has continued, the stock market isnt far off its record high, and the horses indeed still run. Yet 20 years after the handover to China, one of the citys most-venerable institutions, the Hong Kong Jockey Club, which has been called an "ATM for the government" for its huge contributions to the citys tax coffers and charity efforts, is facingtrouble.

Disinterest among manyyoung people and an upcoming bridge link to the glittering casinos of Macau threaten the future of the money-spinning gambling monopoly. Already the amount bet on racing fell 1.7 percent in the latest season for which numbers are available, ending mid-July 2016, from the previous year. While its still a lot of money that HK$106.1 billion ($13.6 billion) was almost 30 percent more than the total of the most-common type ofbettingon thoroughbreds in all of the U.S . gambling on horse racinghas grown an anemic 1 percent a year on average for two decades.

Spectatorsat theJockey Club's Happy Valley Racecourse in Hong Kong.

Photographer: Justin Chin/Bloomberg

The pressure is on them to remain relevant, saidDavid Dodwell, chief executive officer of Strategic Access Ltd., a Hong Kong-based public policy consultancy. An awful lot of the welfare infrastructure that has been built over the decades in Hong Kong is attributable to it.

Finding new sources of cash from allowing simultaneous betting in places like London and New York, as well as increasing the appeal to younger people at home, are critical to keeping a major funding engine of the Hong Kong government racing ahead. The Jockey Club is also expanding into China, a move that could position it well should betting on horses, halted after the 1949 revolution, someday return.

The Jockey Club accounted for about 7 percent of Hong Kongtax revenuelast year equivalent to a third of the citys education budget and 35percent of itssocial welfare spending. It donated HK$3.9 billion to schools, hospitals and other charities, making it the largest donor in Asia and the sixth largest worldwide, according to theWorld Charity Index. The government is also relying on the club rather than the legislature to fund a controversial museum project.

It has become a kind of ATMfor the government, saidTanya Chan, a Legislative Council member and government critic. "The government knows very well where to go if they want a substantial sum of money."

Horses on the track at Happy Valley.

Photographer: Justin Chin/Bloomberg

The Clubs voting members and stewards read like a Whos Who List of Hong Kongs richest and most powerful, including billionaires who control virtually all of the citys significant property, retail, entertainment, utilities and infrastructure building, along with other business luminaries:Li Ka-shing,Lee Shau Kee,Henry Cheng,Stanley Ho,Allan ZemanandCanning Fok.

Major powerhouses of politics are there, too: Former Chief JusticeAndrew Li; former Finance Secretary and Chief SecretaryHenry Tang; former head of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority,Joseph Yam, who on Thursday was appointed to the city's Executive Council, or cabinet; and former Legislative Council PresidentRita Fan.

"For a long time, it has been a place where entrepreneurs and officials can mix together and have the same status," said Eddie Chu, another LegCo member and government critic. "The Jockey Club maintains its power not by horse racing but by its network of powerful people gathering together."

Withtwo race tracks, more than 100 off-track betting outlets, soccer-wagering services and a lottery, the club can be generous because generations of Hong Kongers grew up spending their money and time at the track.

BettingatHappy Valley Racecourse.

Photographer: Justin Chin/Bloomberg

My friends and I were crazy about horse gambling 20 years ago, said Tony Yu, 40, a construction company manager who used to spend several hundred Hong Kong dollars on tickets and beers at the track, especially on payday. Those days are long past. Who do you see reading the horse-racing page in the newspaper and going to the Jockey Club to buy tickets? Old-timers!

The club also faces competition from across the Pearl River Delta, where Macaus casinos are now aggressively targeting Hong Kong, Jockey Club CEO Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresgeswrote in the most recent annual report. With the expected completion later this year of a bridge linking the two cities for the first time, traveling toSands China Ltd.s Venetian andMelco Resorts & Entertainment Ltd.s City of Dreams will be even easier. The bridge will undoubtedlyexacerbate the problem" already facing the club, Engelbrecht-Bresges wrote.

The Jockey Club has found ways to keep the money flowing. One solution has been to expand the number of races per season. Back in the mid-1990s, there were 75 days in a season, with 595 races; now there are 88 in the season, with 807 races. The club also moved into soccer in 2003. Such wagering accounted for HK$86.8 billion in bets in the most recent fiscal year, up 11 percent from the previous year.

A horseswims in anequine pool atSha Tin Racecourse in Hong Kong's New Territories.

Photographer: Justin Chin/Bloomberg

While mainland China doesn't yet allow betting on horses, the Jockey Club is establishing a foothold there. It plans to open a new training facility across the border in Guangdong province next year. Twice the size of the Jockey Clubs facility in Hong Kongs New Territories, the site will be able to host about 660 horses.

Worldwide, the club has broadened its reach through whats known as commingling, or allowing people overseas to bet on Hong Kongs horses. In the 2013-14 season, the Jockey Club began taking bets from Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and Macau. It has also expanded its reach to South Africa, Ireland, Canada and parts of the U.S., where Hong Kongs Happy Valley races are available via simulcast on Wednesdays at 8 a.m. New York time throughTVG Networks online betting site and cable channel,one of several operators in the U.S. with Jockey Club deals.

Last November, the Jockey Club announced anexpansionto the U.K. that enables customers ofLadbrokes Coral Group Plcand anotherbetting shop operator to bet on Hong Kong races. The Jockey Club announced a similaragreement last year with Canadian racetrack owner and online betting services provider Woodbine Entertainment Group.

Inside a Ladbrokes bookmakerin London.

Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg

Hong Kong is attractive for global gamblers, according to Ken Kirchner, former executive director of the Pennsylvania Racing Commission and president of consulting firm FalKirk International. Bettors can wager on unusual options such as a triple trio, three consecutive trifectas, and get huge payouts because Hong Kongs gambling pool is large, he said.

Theyre run under strict regulation and authority, so you feel like youre betting into a very honest product, Kirchner said.

Hong Kong offers more data on horses than other venues, including the only consistent publishing of veterinary reports, said Ron Luniewski, president of Xpressbet, a Washington, Pa.-based company that provides online betting.

"Thats a big deal. I give them a lot of credit for that," he said. In a lot of ways, Hong Kong racing is the gold standard globally.

Commingling now accounts for about 6 percent of the Jockey Clubs betting income, according toRichard Cheung, head of marketing, and is forecast to top 10 percent by the end of the decade.

Hong Kong is a very small place, Cheung said. To seek growth we must go elsewhere.

As it expands globally, the Jockey Club will still have a challenge winning back people like Yu, the construction manager.

Now I seldom bet because there are so many other options, he said. I earn more money than before, so I can afford to invest money in the stock market.

People leaveHappy Valley Racecourse.

Photographer: Justin Chin/Bloomberg

With assistance from EbenNovy-Williams

Original post:

Hong Kong's Gambling Empire Is Losing Horsepower - Bloomberg - Bloomberg

Posted in Gambling | Comments Off on Hong Kong’s Gambling Empire Is Losing Horsepower – Bloomberg – Bloomberg

Kenya says will raise tax rate on gambling to 35 percent – CNBCAfrica.com

Posted: at 5:41 am

Photo: Pixabay.

NAIROBI (Reuters) Kenyas president signed a law on Wednesday that raises the tax rate on gambling but sets it at a lower rate than had originally been proposed.

The law will impose a tax of 35 percent of gross profits on all gambling. Until now, lotteries were taxed at 5 percent, betting firms bookmakers at 7.5 percent, casino gambling at 12 percent and competitions like raffles at 15 percent.

Secretary for the National Treasury Henry Rotich had originally proposed raising the tax rate to 50 percent, saying the rapid growth of on-line gambling hurt the young and vulnerable, and the proceeds from the tax would fund sports, culture and the arts.

Gambling in Kenya generally takes place on-line. Mobile- phone-based financial services like M-Pesa by Safaricom allow users to place bets, pay off losses and get winnings on their phone without needing a bank account.

Industry executives say about 7 million out of 45 million Kenyans have registered for betting services. No figures are publicly available on the industrys profits.

(Reporting by George Obulutsa, editing by Larry King)

Read the original post:

Kenya says will raise tax rate on gambling to 35 percent - CNBCAfrica.com

Posted in Gambling | Comments Off on Kenya says will raise tax rate on gambling to 35 percent – CNBCAfrica.com

Pat Howard: Pa. House seeks to deepen state’s gambling addiction – GoErie.com

Posted: at 5:41 am

Legalized gambling any gambling really comes with the specter of people who will become addicted or at least form habits more costly than they can really afford.

Since the opening of Presque Isle Downs & Casino in 2007, that's been evident in the prosecution of people who turned to theft to feed that habit. Some of them get in really deep.

And those are just the ones you hear about. There's surely damage being done to lives and families in ways that don't turn up in the court docket.

But the deepest and most intractable gambling addiction of all has been playing out in plain view for months. Government in Pennsylvania has it bad.

The latest round of political maneuvering over the proceeds of vice was launched last fall by a Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling that voided part of the state's 2004 casino law as unconstitutional and put huge sums of casino tax revenue in play. The legislative sharks immediately started circling.

That set off alarm bells in Erie and other communities that host casinos. The court decision in effect abrogated the deal the state made with those communities to provide them with millions in gambling cash in exchange for shouldering the problems and burdens that casinos bring.

That put at risk the roughly $11 million annually Erie County has been receiving from the casino. This region, like the state, has become deeply reliant on that money.

The state Senate's version of the legislative fix to the gambling law would make Erie County mostly whole, splitting $10 million a year between Erie County government and the Erie County Gaming Revenue Authority. But then the House upped the ante earlier this month by proposing to change who controls the money and to cut some new regional players in on the action.

The House version would eliminate the Gaming Revenue Authority from the equation in favor of funneling $8 million straight to county government. It would also reallocate $1.5 million for blight reduction countywide.

The remaining $500,000 annually would be redirected to the city of Erie for public safety or infrastructure. Or in the language of the legislation: "$500,000 of the gross terminal revenue to a city of the third class with a population of not less than 80,000 located within a county of the third class that is also a home rule county." Home sweet home.

The prospect of the region retaining most of its casino money has been met with relief. And the House's move to eliminate the Gaming Revenue Authority in favor of direct county control over the money ignited a vehement debate in these parts.

But the most consequential aspect of the House version for the state as a whole involves another massive expansion of gambling throughout Pennsylvania. That would deepen state government's addiction and enable it by arranging for more people to lose more money in more places.

It would do that by allowing 40,000 video betting machines in bars, fire halls, restaurants, bowling alleys and other venues licensed to sell alcohol. Gov. Tom Wolf's administration has projected that would raise $150 million.

As the state struggles with a massive budget deficit, the House play would fatten Harrisburg's coffers by putting gambling in easy reach of a lot more folks who could put their money to more productive uses. The Black Clergy of Philadelphia and Vicinity came out against the expansion this week, arguing that it would "have a hugely negative effect on the quality of life of already challenged neighborhoods and communities."

In addition to the moral and civic considerations, the proposed expansion raises questions about how much gambling the market can bear. The new options could cut into the take by existing casinos and the Pennsylvania Lottery, and presumably in due course threaten the share received by Erie County and other host communities.

The casino industry is taking that threat seriously. The Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem launched a $1 million advertising campaign aimed at turning public opinion against licensing video gaming terminals statewide.

There's risk for the state as well. Remember that it was just five years ago when then-Gov. Tom Corbett pushed unsuccessfully to outsource management of the state lottery in a bid to increase its revenue. Corbett's reasoning was that without more money coming in, the coming demographic wave of older Pennsylvanians would swamp the lottery's capacity to fund services for them.

As the House proposes doubling down on gambling again, the bottom line is simple. For the state to win that bet, it has to create more losers.

Pat Howard can be reached at 870-1721. Send email to pat.howard@timesnews.com. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/ETNhoward.

Read the original here:

Pat Howard: Pa. House seeks to deepen state's gambling addiction - GoErie.com

Posted in Gambling | Comments Off on Pat Howard: Pa. House seeks to deepen state’s gambling addiction – GoErie.com

Local Black clergy oppose expanding gambling – The Philadelphia Tribune

Posted: at 5:41 am

Members of the Black Clergy of Philadelphia and Vicinity held a press conference at Mt. Pisgah AME Church, 428 N. 41st St. in West Philadelphia Monday to announce their opposition to plans to extend gambling in Pennsylvania.

Weve come today because we want to raise our voice about an issue which we believe will have a hugely negative affect on the quality of life of already challenged neighborhoods and communities, said Black Clergy President the Rev. Jay Broadnax.

Broadnax said on June 7, the House of Representative passed what he called sweeping legislation to expand access to video and internet gaming video within the state including airports, truck stops and other places with valid liquor licenses.

The state has set a goal of a maximum of 30,000 of these machines in 2018, 35,000 in 2019 and 40,000 in 2020, he said.

Broadnax said supporters of the legislation said that the increase revenue from passage of this measure would increase state revenue and close the budget gap.

Our first concern is how this will impact neighborhoods and communities, he said.

Currently the majority of gaming take place in casinos like Sugar House and Parx which, for some constitute a harmless evening out. With this new legislation gaming traffic moves directly into our neighborhoods, in bowling alleys, supermarkets and Stop n Gos, many which are already nuisances and sources of disruption.

The Black Clergy noted not only will this create incentives for local residents to misuse already scarce personal resources but will also pose the risk of increased loitering, noise and other nuisances in already challenged areas.

Were also concerned about what this sort of legislation and this sort of revenue raising means in the quality of lives of individuals, he said. The idea of depending and relying on vices, such as gambling, as the way to balance the budget does not bode well for the long-term health of families.

If passed, the Black Clergy said the ability to go to the corner Stop N Go as opposed to a casino would possibly have a direct impact on those who lack the wherewithal to travel to casinos.

While a few would benefit financially, having extended access to these devices would only serve to foster an increase in behaviors that could quickly turn addictive and place at risk the financial stability of families in our communities, Broadnax said.

Not only did the clergy express concerns about the impact of the legislation if ratified but they also expressed concerns about the intent of the proposal.

It seems as though some of our legislators want to balance the budget on the backs of those who could least afford it, reaching into our urban neighborhoods where the highest concentration of liquor license holding establishments are, rather than finding a way of gleaming state revenue from those who are far better able to pay.

Citing underfunded schools, oppressive poverty, rate of any major city and depressed neighborhoods, Broadnax said expanding gambling to local communities would add another hardship to already struggling neighborhoods.

The Rev. Donald D. Moore of Mt. Carmel Baptist Church asked Gov. Tom Wolfe would veto the measure which he says would have the potential of devastating local communities by compounding the burdens of residents who cannot even afford the necessities of life.

Its almost as if they are saying that if they are not going to the casinos, lets bring the casinos to the people, Moore said.

House Bill 271 passed the House of representatives by a vote of 102 89, this bill authorizes new gaming options throughout the state and authorizes the proposal of Video Gaming Terminals (VGTs), similar to slot machines, in such places as bowling alleys catering clubs, truck stops, restaurants, golf courses and other establishments with valid liquor licenses.

The book of Isaiah said that they will frame mischief using law, said Philadelphia NAACP president and minister Rodney Muhammad. This is an attempt to exploit an already weakened community and attack a vulnerable demographic.

I wanted to be here on behalf of the NAACP and all concerned stakeholders to be a part of this effort to resist this more demonic kind of legislation, he added.

Originally posted here:

Local Black clergy oppose expanding gambling - The Philadelphia Tribune

Posted in Gambling | Comments Off on Local Black clergy oppose expanding gambling – The Philadelphia Tribune