The party of the NSW Greens have unveiled plans to suspend so-called poker machines from clubs and pubs in the state of New South Wales amid constantly increasing calls from anti-gambling campaigners to clean up the sector.
On December 4th, the party released its “Pull the Pin on Pokies” strategy which seeks to help venues access alternative revenue streams and also redirect the existing revenue aimed at supporting problem gambling services. The NSW Greens are also backing the introduction of the so-called cashless gambling card that is currently being considered by the Government as a way to tackle alleged money laundering in the industry.
Under the plan, pokies would be removed from pubs across the state within the next five years, and from NSW clubs over the next ten years. Furthermore, venues would make a bigger payment to the Government under the provisions of the “Pull the Pin on Pokies” plan, with a 60% super tax set to be imposed on poker machines across all clubs and pubs, as the tax is set to increase by 5% on an annual basis.
Cate Faehrmann, a Greens Member of Parliament, said that gambling in New South Wales is out of control. She further noted that the party’s plan would seek to repair the harm that had been inflicted on local communities by poker machines. The NSW Greens are also willing to reduce the social costs of gambling by no less than AU$87 billion over a decade. Ms Faehmann called on the major political parties to make a commitment to the much-needed reforms ahead of the upcoming election that is scheduled to take place in March 2023.
The Change Would Generate AU$3.4-Billion Extra Revenue in 5 Years, NSW Greens Say
According to preliminary expectations unveiled by NSW Greens, the change would deliver an extra revenue of AU$3.4 billion over a five-year period, with the money set to be used for funding various community-based services, including the reduction of gambling harm.
The former head of the anti-money laundering unit of ClubsNSW, Troy Stolz, backed the release of the Greens’ plan. He has noted that money laundering taking place in clubs and pubs across the state should not be ignored, along with gambling harm and said that the Greens have a plan to address those issues, whereas the Labour and Liberal parties only planned to support the gambling industry.
According to a report that the NSW Crime Commission released in November found that billions of dirty cash have been funnelled through poker machines in the state every year. The major recommendation made by the report was for the competent authorities to use a cashless gambling system in order to tackle money laundering.
However, a spokesman of ClubsNSW, the trade body of the state’s legal gambling sector, criticised the plans for the implementation of higher taxes on poker machine venues, saying that NSW clubs alone were already delivering about AU$1.2 billion into the Government’s coffers annually. He shared that while about 92% of NSW people visit a club at least once a year, only 8% of local voters support the Greens Party, which basically means that the wider public is happy with the clubs the way they are.
- Author
Olivia Cole
