AFL boss McLachlan: gambling restrictions will likely be tightened
We have a set of restrictions, they’re being reviewed at the moment, and probably they’ll end up tighter but we don’t believe in prohibition, because all it does is drive it underground and offshore and has its own set of problems.
AFL CEO on staff betting: ‘integrity of our game is critical’
Outgoing AFL boss Gillon McLachlan was on 3AW earlier. We mentioned he talked about gambling but we’ve got a bit more here.
McLachlan was asked about AFL staff betting on games:
For clarity, no one at the AFL has ever been able to bet on a game. But it’s just been tightened for certain cohorts involved in football departments and others, to tipping and social betting. The policy was essentially legal bets, you could have a bet with your mates or whatever.
Whether it’s too heavy-handed or not, the integrity of our game is critical. We’ll continue to make decisions in that lens.
AFL CEO says volume of gambling ads in sport is ‘too much’
Speaking on 3AW earlier AFL’s CEO, Gillon McLachlan, said he believes there are too many gambling ads in the sport.
“I think there’s probably too much … I just think the volume is too much so it’s in your face.”
It comes after Guardian Australia published a story yesterday showing gambling ads had surpassed umpiring and rule changes as the most common fan concern.
Spot power prices hit maximum as east coast heatwave lifts energy demand
The late-season heatwave that is baking a large swathe of eastern Australia is also keeping the operators of the main electricity grid busy.
Last evening, wholesale power prices jumped briefly to their maximum $15,500/MWh in Queensland, and about $1,000 below that in New South Wales. (Spot prices usually average closer to $100/MWh.)
Spot power prices spiked to their maximums of $15,500/megawatt-hour briefly in Queensland last night, and more than $14,500 in NSW. @AEMO_Energy also activated a reserve contract to ensure supply during strains on the grid. More are possible this evening as heatwave rolls on. pic.twitter.com/PD7ng39Ljk
The Australian Energy Market Operator had been issuing “lack of reserve” notices for the two states for a couple of days for the evening peak (when the sun goes down but demand often goes up).
The operator also entered into a reserve contract, effectively preparing to pay for big users to power off or prepare too. (It doesn’t look like the intervention was actually needed, but payments will follow anyway.)
The contract ran for an hour after 7pm (AEDT).
We foreshadowed this issue might arise earlier this week, with this look at how NSW’s energy system faces some notable challenges after the state election on 25 March:
Remember, we lose AGL’s Liddell coal-fired power plant in stages from about 20 April with a full closure of the 50-year-old clunker and its remaining 1,260MW of capacity.
As Paul McArdle from consultancy Global-Roam notes:
“I expect there will be a number of direct conversations happening about all of this [including Liddell’s closure] in the coming days within market participants, energy user representatives, government departments and so on.”
Friday will be another warm day, with peak temperatures approaching the mid-30s in parts of western Sydney (30C in the city itself) and 36C in Brisbane.
Melbourne joins in the heat too, with a top of 37C forecast by the bureau for Saturday. The heat starts to dissipate by early next week, but may near 40C in western Sydney on Sunday.
At least those hot days will land during the weekend when power demand will be less than during a week day.
Still, it might not be fun on sports fields across much of the eastern states, as Mostafa Rachwani notes here:
