Australian punters managed to save about AU$1.5 billion by not playing poker machines in the weeks since the closures of local casinos, clubs and pubs have been announced as part of the restrictions unveiled because of the coronavirus pandemic. Still, the amounts that have been spent on online gambling services during the massive shutdown across the country remain unknown.
The independent non-profit national advocacy organisation aimed at preventing and minimising gambling-related harm, Alliance for Gambling Reform, has reported that AU$1 billion has been saved in less than a month across Australian clubs and pubs. The actual figure, however, is closer to AU$1.5 billion in case gambling losses in casinos are also taken into account.
Tim Costello, the leader of the Alliance for Gambling Reform, explained that the figures demonstrated how massive the negative effects of poker machines are on the territory of Australia. He reminded that the money could instead be spent by local players to pay for many other everyday costs, including rent, mortgages, medical bills and utilities, etc.
Mr Costello further insisted that the ongoing poker machine venue shutdown could significantly reduce gambling-related harm, going beyond the benefits for the economy or the players themselves. He reminded that the negative effects that gambling-related harm could have on Australian punters included not only financial problems but also homelessness, mental illness, family violence and even suicide, all of which being serious issues that could escalate through the Covid-19 crisis.
Alliance for Gambling Reform Supports ACT Government Measures to Limit Pokie Operations
Mr Costello has supported the Australian Central Territory (ACT) Government in its decision to pay the sum of AU$15,000 to local community pubs and clubs to encourage them to surrender their poker machine operating licences and to become more oriented to expanding their non-gambling services.
According to the Alliance for Gambling Reform’s advocate, the ongoing coronavirus crisis has provided the Australian communities with a chance to reconsider the way they spend their money on free-time activities. Mr Costello also shared that sporting and other clubs should also think about the ways they serve their communities by not encouraging local people to spend such large amounts of money on pokies.
Some former gambling addicts, who are currently members of the Alliance for Gambling Reform, have insisted that many people in Australia have been actually helped by the massive closures in the retail gambling sector in the country, and more specifically, by the shutdown of electronic gambling machines.
Even before the lockdown, anti-gambling campaigners have insisted that poker machines, also known as pokies, have been extremely harmful to the mental health of more vulnerable punters who find it hard to control their spending on the highly-addictive terminals. The machines have been one of the most controversial forms of gambling in the country, due to their addictive nature that stimulates players to spend more time and money playing them.
- Author
Olivia Cole
