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JUNE 8, 2023
Pokies policy poser By Mary Anne Gill
Waipā gamblers put $10.71 million into pokie machines in the 12 months ended March 31 this year. But if history is anything to go by, only about 10 per cent of that money will return to Waipā in the form of community grants. And there is evidence the money raised comes predominantly from the poor and goes to the rich, a report presented to Waipā District Council’s Strategic Planning and Policy committee this week says. After intense debate, the committee agreed to go out to the community for its views on the council’s gambling policy which regulates the district’s class four gambling and TAB venues. The review is carried out every three years.
Pokies make more money per machine than the average person in the district earns in a year –
Problem Gambling Foundation policy advisor Kay Kristensen Waipā limits the number of gaming ‘pokie’ machines to 232 at 15 venues and in sites where the primary activity is not gambling. It allows existing venues to transfer their machines to a new venue, but they cannot be next to a school or licensed early childhood centre. Class four gambling - pokies in pubs, clubs and TABs (excluding casinos) - are classified under the Gambling Act as ‘high-risk, highturnover’. Council staff prepared a Social Impact Assessment of Gambling in the district as part of the review and presented it to a workshop last month.
That assessment found only a tenth of the pokie money came back to the community, class four gambling was on the increase, about 22 per cent of those people experienced gambling harm and the grants system acted as a “socially regressive tax”. Funds are raised predominantly from individuals living in more highly deprived areas and distributed to groups living in less highly deprived areas, or from the poor to the rich, the assessment found. The top five Waipā organisations to get a share of $481,028 in community grants this year
from class four gambling profits in the district are the Puahue Hall Association ($108,380), Te Awamutu Youth Development Trust ($78,706), Cambridge Jockey Club ($40,000), Waikato Water Polo Club ($27,460) and Maungatautari Ecological Island Trust ($25,000). At the workshop, Problem Gambling Foundation policy advisor Kay Kristensen, who lives
in Cambridge, said the council had an important role in protecting its community. Pokies make more money per machine than the average person in the district earns in a year, she said. “With that comes associated harm,” she said. About 16 per cent of people
Where the money goes For every $10 put into a pokie machine in Waipā, $9 is paid out in winnings. Here is where the other $1 goes.
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PAWS A WHILE......
Let’s talk about dogs! We’re proposing to make some changes to where and how dogs can exercise across Waipā. We want to know what you think! Find out more and have your say by visiting: waipadc.govt.nz/dogsreview
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