2017-07-07
Victoria's Labor government today guaranteed 25 years more pokies harm, promising not to remove a single machine before 2042.
“Pokies rip billions of dollars from Victorian communities each year, and Labor is now locking in this crisis for another three decades,” said Colleen Hartland, Victorian Greens spokesperson for Gambling.
“Labor is addicted to the tax revenue from these machines, and time and time again it’s the poorest communities that get hit the hardest.”
“Gambling addiction leads to crime, family breakdown and job loss. Money that goes into pokies is money that isn’t being spent in local businesses and on essentials for the family. That’s the last thing we want.”
“The Gambling Minister’s own electorate of Kororoit is the worst area in Victoria for pokies losses. She’s putting profits before her own people. She won’t even stand up for her own community,” she said.
The Greens suite of measures to reduce gambling harm includes $1 bet limits, mandatory pre-commitment, and increasing powers for local councils to reject new pokies applications.