NZ to impose jail terms for match-fixing

Penalty set at seven-year prison time; effective before 2015 World Cups.

WELLINGTON: New Zealand is to slap a seven-year jail term on anyone caught match-fixing under a new law due to take effect before it hosts the Cricket World Cup and Under-20 Fifa World Cup next year.

The Match-Fixing Bill, introduced to parliament on Thursday with unanimous political support, would apply the lengthy sentences to anyone caught trying to influence or benefit from the outcome of a match or race.

“Match-fixing is a growing problem internationally and has been described as the number one threat to the integrity, value and growth of sport,” said Sports Minister Murray McCully.

“As we have seen from recent events, New Zealand is not immune to this threat.”

Opposition sports spokesman Trevor Mallard said the bill made an important change to existing laws to make it “very clear that match-fixing is a crime. This puts it beyond any doubt whatsoever”.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 1^st, 2014.

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