The Western Australia state government has announced the appointment of an independent monitor to oversee Crown Perth, with WA Police Force Assistant Commissioner Paul Steel named as the man to determine the success or failure of Crown’s road to redemption.
The appointment of an independent monitor – which mirrors the actions of the Victorian government in supervising Crown Melbourne – is in response to a Royal Commission report handed down earlier this year that found Crown unsuitable to retain its casino license for Crown Perth.
The report recommended a two-year period of remediation for Crown to establish suitability.
The WA government said Steel brings “decades of experience in organized crime investigation, organizational transformation, delivery of cross-government strategic outcomes and senior leadership” to the new role.
“This is the latest step in the WA Government’s response to the Royal Commission and represents a new era of integrity, accountability and transparency at Perth’s Casino,” said Racing and Gaming Minister, Tony Buti.
“Paul Steel has a proven record of delivering great outcomes across a career of almost 30 years in law enforcement and criminal investigation, including in key leadership roles.
“The purpose of the recent legislation and Independent Monitor is to restore integrity to the casino operator in Perth to ensure that it is operating in a first-class manner. That is what we require as a Government and that is what the community expects.
“Appropriately, the taxpayer will not pay for this – the cost of the Independent Monitor will be recouped from the casino operator.”