The Greens have issued a media release that reveals the top 25 hotels making the most profit from poker machines in NSW take a staggering $253 million in pre-tax profit per year from vulnerable communities taking $486,538 per week from communities in the 2016/17 financial year alone.
NSW Greens MLC Justin Field said behind the mega profits from poker machines revealed by the data is the immeasurable harm caused to people, families and communities.
“The $253 million lost to addictive pokies in the top 25 hotels is no accident, these machines are designed for addiction and making profits from people and communities,” he said.
“The vested interests in the hotel industry continue to push to wind back regulations on gambling. It’s long past time Government reined them in and put people before pokies profits.
“NSW must counter the tactics used by the hotels and clubs to protect their mega-profits from the pokies. That requires an acceleration in the overall reduction in poker machines across the state while putting limits on the capacity of existing machines to strip money out of communities such as $1 bet limits.
“The balance has swung too far in NSW in favour of the gambling industry and pokies venues, now the NSW Government must stand with communities and protect them from these addictive machines,” Mr Field said. With 1485 locations across NSW Identified the State Net Profit Ranking order has Eurobodalla locations well down the list. 116004 Adelaide Hotel MORUYA 17 machines 573rd of 1485 116012 Bay View Hotel BATEMANS BAY 17 machines 576th 116071 O'Brien's Hotel Narooma NAROOMA 12 machines 760th 116101 Moruya Waterfront Hotel Motel 8 machines 844th 123124 Mariner's Lodge Hotel BATEMANS BAY 12 machines 859th 116039 Lynch's Hotel NAROOMA 12 machines 937th 116055 Monarch Hotel MORUYA 16 machines 1,027th 116098 Steam Packet Hotel 3 machines 1,341st 116047 Dromedary Hotel 1machine 1,413rd Source of above data: State Rankings by Gaming Machine Profit for Hotels (June 2017 Quarter end) from Liquor and Gaming As many in our community are aware our local clubs contribute annually to our local sporting clubs via ClubGrants. The Gaming Machine Tax Act 2001 outlines the legislative arrangements for the granting of a rebate of gaming machine tax levied on registered clubs. ClubGRANTS are designed to ensure that larger registered clubs in NSW contribute to the provision of front-line services to their local communities; and to ensure that the disadvantaged in the community are better positioned to benefit from the substantial contributions made by those clubs. ClubGRANTS also facilitates contributions by larger clubs towards infrastructure to support sporting, health and community activities You can read the August 2017 ClubGRANTS GUIDELINES Gaming Machine Tax Act 2001 HERE Editors Note: Without ClubGrants in regional Australia there would be a rapid decline in sport sponsorship. From the perspective of a rural economy we accept poker machines because they are legal and they have requirements to ensure the financial safety of users and they also act as a critical and legal leg up for local establishments who contribute to the community at large. It is fine to castigate the gambling industry however with no alternates suggested by the Greens of sources of financial help and community support actions to restrict poker machine use in the city has an enourmous trickle on effect to the bush with greater social consequences.
