Howlett, Leader of the Crown Remediation Programme, Joins the New South Wales Casino Regulator

Howlett, Leader of the Crown Remediation Programme, Joins the New South Wales Casino Regulator

 On Saturday, December 14, the government of New South Wales made the announcement that it has appointed Christine Howlett, who is now in charge of Crown Melbourne's restoration operations, to the position of commissioner for the Independent Casino Commission (NICC) of the territory of New South Wales in Australia.
 Crown casino in Howlett, New South Wales
 Howlett will be appointed to a position with the New South Wales (NSW) casino regulator for a period of four years.  Craig Sahlin, who served as a commissioner for a period of two years, has been replaced by her.  After serving on the board of directors of the New South Wales Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority (ILGA), this was the next step.

 Howlett is arguably best known for her participation in the cleanup of Crown Melbourne, which she brought with her executive leadership expertise.  In the aftermath of the Royal Commission investigation into the venue, she was in charge of supervising the program.

 A total of thirty-three suggestions were presented to the government by the investigation, which was led by Ray Finkelstein and ultimately approved.  On the basis of the investigation, which concluded that the operator was not qualified to hold a casino licence in the state of Victoria, this occurred.

 Previously, Howlett served in high capacities within the Victoria Independent Broad-based Anti-Corruption Commission. This was before he joined Crown.  In addition to that, she held positions at the National Crime Authority, the Royal Commission into the Management of Police Informants in Victoria, and the Department of Family and Community Services in New South Wales.

 Howlett will be in charge of the decontamination of Star Sydney.
 Crown Sydney and The Star Sydney are the two casinos that fall under the jurisdiction of the New South Wales Crown and Casinos Commission (NICC), which was established in 2022.  The NICC is in the process of implementing its own remediation program at the same time that Howlett is joining the organisation.

 When Bell Two was introduced in February of 2022, Star was already dealing with the aftermath of the initial Bell investigation, which had been conducted in 2022.  In Bell Two, the casino was given a fine, but it was allowed to keep its licence, provided that the venue made some modifications.

 In order to fill the position, "an exhaustive selection process was undertaken," said David Harris, the minister for gaming and racing in the state of Massachusetts.  "Howlett brings to the NICC a diverse set of abilities and expertise in a variety of areas.  She possesses a wealth of knowledge that is extremely applicable to the position of independently supervising the remediation program at Crown Melbourne.

 "She joins the NICC at a crucial time, with the regulator currently monitoring the ongoing remediation work being done at The Star casino in response to the Bell Two Inquiry,"

 Philip Crawford, the chief commissioner of the NICC, stated further that "Christine's skills will be valuable to help the NICC expand its surveillance and data collection capabilities in order to better monitor financial crime risks and compliance."

 Christine's expertise in establishing internal capacity will be of great assistance to the National Insurance Commission (NICC) in maintaining effective regulatory oversight beyond the remediation and suitability phases and into the longer-term stage of sustainability.