Anti Gambling Campaign Australia
ANTI-pokies politicians Andrew Wilkie and Nick Xenophon say the $20 million industry advertising blitz against proposed gambling reforms is based on lies.
Anti-Gambling Campaign. Community Organization. Facebook is showing information to help you better understand the purpose of a Page. Slot machines, also known as poker machines or 'pokies', are common in Australian pubs They are the machines that anti-gambling campaigners in Australia say have the addictive 'force of cocaine'. The Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation is a statutory authority created by the Victorian Parliament to address the challenge of gambling harm in the Victorian community. We work with partners and communities to inform people about the risks of gambling, and to provide support to those who need it, including people affected by someone.
Clubs and hotels will launch a print, television and radio advertisement campaign today against a proposed mandatory poker machine pre-commitment scheme.
Gambling advertising has increased rapidly over the past decade. While smartphones, apps and social media have multiplied the marketing possibilities, a High Court decision in 2008 also played a major part in the dramatic increase in gambling advertising. The effect of the ruling was to allow bookmakers to offer bets anywhere in Australia.
Clubs Australia claims the federal government's plan, which includes a requirement for gamblers to carry cards to set gambling limits, is un-Australian and will cost jobs.
The group's chief executive, Anthony Ball, says the cards are a licence to punt and won't curb gambling addiction.
'It's like saying to an alcoholic it's OK to drink six beers - it's just nonsense,' Mr Ball told ABC Radio this morning ahead of the campaign launch.
Independent MP Andrew Wilkie, who has threatened to withdraw his support for the Gillard government if a mandatory system isn't in place by 2014, accused the clubs of 'telling lies'.
'The industry is being dishonest,' he told ABC Radio, adding it was side-stepping the 100,000 problem gamblers identified by the Productivity Commission.
The campaign's claim that the proposed reforms were un-Australian was bizarre, Mr Wilkie said.
The clubs' preferred voluntary system would have a very limited impact on problem gambling, he said.
Mr Wilkie said given the option, the vast majority of poker machine players would opt for 'low intensity' machines that limit gambling losses to $50 an hour.
Fellow anti-pokies campaigner Nick Xenophon agrees the clubs' argument is based on 'lies' given final details of the reforms are yet to be finalised.
'This greedy, self-interested lobby has really 'jumped the shark',' the independent senator said, noting the campaign's cost exceeds the annual spend on problem gambling services.
The Joint Parliamentary Committee into Gambling Reform is due to report at the end of April.
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Originally published asAnti-gambling campaign 'based on lies'