Church leaders call for staying the course on pokie reform

Church leaders from around Australia are urging all members of Federal Parliament to ‘look to their consciences’ and oppose the Bill to repeal the requirements for; limits on ATMs in pokies venues, dynamic warnings on pokies, abolish the National Gambling Regulator and stop the roll out of pre-commitment on pokies throughout Australia.

“There is no doubt that poker machines cause extensive harm to individuals, families and our communities. Our Parliamentarians must act immediately to reduce this ongoing harm,” said Rev Tim Costello, Chair of the Australian Churches Gambling Taskforce. The leaders are calling on the Federal Parliament to maintain the legislation that was developed after widespread public consultation, debate and parliamentary reviews. The existing legislation is sound. “There is a real danger this Bill will prevent the future roll out of any system that will allow pokie gamblers to set themselves enforceable limits on their losses”, said Rev Costello.

“Instead, venues may adopt different limit setting systems that will not communicate with each other and all of which will allow gamblers to immediately keep gambling when they reach their limits”. “Recent research from the Coalition Government in Victoria has demonstrated the removal of ATMs from pokie venues has had a significant impact in reducing losses from people with gambling problems”, said Rev Costello. “Yet the Federal Coalition Government opposes even having limits on ATM withdrawals.” The arguments to support these calls are overwhelming, said Rev Costello:

1. The Australian Productivity Commission undertook the world’s most comprehensive review of the gambling industry and concluded in 2010 that a sensible consumer protection measure was to require poker machine players to set a budget for their gambling on poker machines – an enforceable limit chosen by the gambler.

2. They also found that 40% of gambling revenue comes from people with a major gambling problem and that pokies is the main gambling activity for a vast majority of people with gambling problems.

3. For every person with a gambling problem, at least seven other people are affected, one of whom is a child.

4. In 2011, A Uniting Communities survey found that 80% of people polled across Australia, supported the plan that people be given an opportunity to set a limit on what they plan to spend before they play the pokies. Similar numbers of people want less poker machines. “The legislation passed by the Australian Parliament last year was an important step in reducing the very high levels of gambling harm in Australia. It was certainly less than we wanted, but we were prepared to negotiate and compromise, the legislation is sound, in the national interest and deserves to be retained,” said Rev Costello

Members of the Australian Churches Gambling Taskforce include the heads of Australian Christian Churches and the heads of their social services agencies nationally, united by a commitment to make poker machine gambling safer.

Tim Costello is available for interview on 0411 633 446 Contact: Mark Zirnsak (Victoria) 0409 166 915 or Mark Henley (South Australia) on 0404067011