In 2018, Queensland citizens lost a massive amount of AU$6 million a day, which means their losses are worth the staggering AU$4,572 every minute, to poker machines situated in local hotels and clubs.
The state hit a record high, with its total losses being estimated to AU$2.4 billion in 2018, with the data going back to 2004.
According to Tim Costello, the director of the Alliance for Gambling Reform, losses kept rising due to the fact that poker machines, also known as pokies, were getting more and more addictive. Mr Costello also blamed the more sophisticated loyalty schemes which are being unveiled and which have been considered to attract more customers. This is exactly why Mr Costello urged the State Government to take measures in order to make sure that local people are protected against large losses.
According to the Director of the Alliance for Gambling Reform, the maximum bet allowed at the machines should be slashed from AU$5 to AU$1 so that the losses that could eventually be generated remain much smaller. In addition, Mr Costello shared that Queensland authorities should reduce the machine numbers, as well as the trading hours of the establishments. He also thinks that city councils across the state should receive more powers over the poker machines’ approval process.
In 2018, Queensland councils voted to ask the State Government to give them greater powers to approve the location and an overall number of gambling machines.
Poker Machine Tax Revenue Set to Increase Further in 2019
According to Mr Costello, the constant increase in poker machines losses was causing misery across the state. He shared that pokies could be really dangerous in more disadvantaged and vulnerable communities, as they could add to crime rates, family breakdowns, bankruptcy, homelessness and suicide rates. He has commented that the AU$2.4 billion lost on the notorious poker machines could be used for creating more jobs and further economic activity across the state on an annual basis rather than being wasted on what he called “thoroughly unproductive” pokies.
The poker machine tax revenue brought to the state coffers in 2017/18 amounted to AU$718 million. According to budget papers, that amount was expected to increase to AU$750 million in 2018/19. The number of poker machines in Queensland totalled 42,290 at 1,124 sites in December 2018. In comparison, there were 38,265 operational pokies at 1,353 sites across the state in July 2004.
When it comes to gambling losses, pokies beat all types of gambling, with Queenslanders’ losses on the machines in local clubs and hotels amounted to AU$2.2 billion in the year to November 2018. In comparison, the amount lost by state’s residents at casinos was estimated to AU$868 million (including poker machines and Keno available in casinos). Queensland voters also lost AU$422 million on the lottery, AU$248 million on sports betting and AU$93 million on Keno during the same twelve months.
The city which saw most money being lost on controversial poker machines was Brisbane, with local residents losing AU$531 million in the last fiscal year. That amount was followed by the Gold Coast with losses of AU$336 million, Moreton Bay with AU$212 million. Logan residents lost AU$164 million on pokies in the year ending in November 2018, while the Sunshine Coast saw poker machine loses amounting to AU$151 million.
- Author
Daniel Williams
