A reputable gambling researcher has called for the Queensland Government to make it mandatory for local gamblers to impose some spending limits on so-called pokies, praising the measure as a powerful tool to reduce gambling-related harm.
The head of the gambling and social determinants unit of the school of public health and preventive medicine at Monash University, Charles Livingstone, explained that a requirement for poker machine players to preset such limits should be implemented across the clubs’ and pubs’ pokies in Queensland. Currently, there are more than 40,000 poker machines in pubs and clubs across the state.
Dr Livingstone noted that the measure would guarantee that customer losses do not exceed the amount they set before sitting down in front of the machine. The gambling researcher also said that it was extremely important to make pre-commitment for pokie spending mandatory in order for the measure to be effective.
According to Dr Livingstone, this could be done without revealing the gamblers’ identities and would also provide real-time data regarding problem gamblers’ losses.
As explained by a spokesperson for the Office of Liquor and Gaming (OFLG) in Queensland, voluntary pre-commitment limits were already available in the gaming venues across the state, and that the implementation of spending limits was one of the issues that are being considered by competent authorities as part of their review of the gambling code of practice.
Implementation of Preset Pokie Limits Could Reduce Gambling-Related Harm, Analysts Say
Professor Livingstone shared that the Federal Government of Australia recently enacted a requirement for online gambling operators to send their customers monthly statements regarding their losses and winnings over the period.
According to the researcher, there had not been efficient interventions in place regarding online gambling, or at least nothing that could make it equal to land-based poker machine gambling. Still, however, he believes that poker machine gambling remained the most harmful form of gambling, and regulatory bodies around Australia had largely failed to recognise the detrimental impact that pokies had on their customers.
Dr Livingstone shared that, in his opinion, poker machines in local clubs and pubs still seem to be able to operate without too much oversight and intervention from the authorities. He also reminded that the industry pretty much relies on a relatively small number of people who are losing large sums of money, which is exactly how the sector generates most of its profits. That is exactly why it is important for gambling venues to set codes of conduct aimed at responsible gambling and guarantee that these codes of conduct are effectively enforced.
According to an analysis of the voluntary YourPlay poker machines pre-commitment system of the state of Victoria carried out by the University of Adelaide in 2019, the obligation was implemented by the venues themselves and the state authorities. Unfortunately, it had been unsuccessful because of its poor uptake. Still, the analysis found that reasonable rates of benefits in terms of gambling-harm minimisation and customer protection were achieved by the gamblers using the YourPlay cards. The usage of the aforementioned cards, however, was very low.
- Author
Daniel Williams
