Residents of the Australian state Victoria believe more radical gambling reforms should be enforced to help battle an escalating addition to slot machines or as the locals refer to them, “pokies”. The Deakin University in Victoria conducted a survey and its results revealed that the majority of Victorians insist that the authorities should concentrate their efforts on introducing more drastic reforms to battle the growing gambling addiction across Australia’s most densely populated state.
This is further supported by various government statistics which indicate that many residents of the state are losing their money to the said pokies at rather alarming rates. The statistics reveal that in some parts of the state, slot fans are losing as much as AU$1 million on these machines per three days. Furthermore, there are Victorian cities where players addicted to pokies have collectively lost the disturbing amount of AU$110.5 million in the year to June, which makes for average losses of about AU$10 million per month.
What further adds to the alarming issue is the fact these results do not take into consideration the overall amounts Victorians have lost on other casino games and sports betting. The figures apply strictly to slot machine losses. Furthermore, statistics show that Victorians have collectively lost the staggering sum of AU$50 billion since slot machines were first introduced in the state back in 1992.
It is precisely this alarming tendency that has served as an incentive for the Deakin University to conduct the aforementioned study. The results were published yesterday and it was established that the vast majority of Victoria residents believe the government should adopt tougher measures to better regulate the gambling industry.
As many as 500 citizens of the state who partook in the survey were of the opinion that brick-and-mortar casinos pose as the most addictive form of gambling, followed closely by slot machines, sports betting, and horse racing.
Samantha Thomas, Chief Researcher and Associate Professor at the Deakin University, revealed she has observed one very disconcerting trend among pokies fans in Victoria. According to Thomas, the potentially harmful effects that are associated with compulsive gambling are not a sufficient motivation to prevent Victorians from betting on slot machines. Thomas went on to explain that one in five participants in the survey admitted to playing pokies at least once per month despite the perceived harms these casino games are associated with. The same participants, who admitted to playing the slots, also confessed they are betting on the outcome of sports events as well.
Thomas is of the opinion that there are a number of factors which contribute to the growing problem with compulsive gambling in Victoria. These include convenience and the games’ availability as well as the compelling promotional campaigns and advertisements. All these factors need to be recognised by the government, Thomas explained. She concluded by saying the state’s officials should do more to protect the citizens from the harms associated with gambling.
The Deakin University survey also established that the majority of the participants strongly support the prohibition of gambling advertisements shown at sports venues during games. Over three quarters of the participants believe the number of slot machines on the territory of Victoria needs to be reduced.
The results of the Deakin survey were published only days after Marlene Kairouz, the Minister for Consumer Affairs, Gaming and Liquor Regulation, announced that the number of slot machines in the state will be reduced to 27,372 for a period of 25 years. Each landbased gambling venue is allowed to operate no more than 105 slot machines.
- Author
Daniel Williams
