The state opposition will take the policy to the looming Queensland election, arguing an increase to the cap will throw a "lifeline" to smaller clubs facing closure.

In short:

  • Queensland’s LNP opposition wants to increase the cap on poker machines that can operate at clubs with more than two premises.
  • The gaming machine cap for a club licensee with three or more sites is 500, but the LNP wants to lift that to 700.

What’s next?

  • The LNP is taking the policy to the looming October state election, arguing that the proposal would benefit smaller clubs facing closure.

… Don’t these statements contradict each other?

-> Applies only to businesses with more than two premises

-> benefits “smaller clubs”

???

Also I love the related stories:

  • biscuitswalrus
    5·
    5 months ago

    Currently struggling with someone close and their gambling addiction. I’m too biased to have a fair opinion here, but I frankly think Japan has a better no gambling policy. Sure you can still do it, with extra steps, but fuck, gun laws fixed mass shootings, and anti-gambling laws would reduce financial suicide.

    The problem with my close relative is that the gambling problem is their coping mechanism for a bigger mental health issue, but convincing a doctor that there’s a problem is fucking hard.

    So they get upset, throw a tantrum, storm the pokies and try to end it all a spin at a time. All because 10 years ago they would do it with $200 and have a good laugh about it either way and walk out. But the inhibition is gone.

    So we’ve banned them from the pubs and clubs, but there’s always somewhere else they can go.

    Can’t get help, can’t block the financial suicide. And I’m not a relative and their family is part of the core issue so no help there.

    Anyway thanks for making it so hard Australia. Why not make it even bigger.

    • ZagorathEnglish
      5·
      5 months ago

      So we’ve banned them from the pubs and clubs

      Sorry, did you mean “them” as in your person, or pokies? Because honestly, banning pokies from being anywhere other than casinos (after all, Australia is currently almost the only place you’ll ever find pokies outside a casino—with our measly 0.3% of the world’s population, we have 75% of its non-casino pokies, and 18% of all the pokies) would be one of the biggest things we could do to improve things. That, plus banning the advertising of gambling like we banned smoking ads decades ago—especially in connection with popular sporting events.

      Unfortunately for your person yeah, the most important thing we can do is to prevent people getting addicted in the first place, because it becomes much more difficult once someone already has an addiction. Because yeah, you can try to prevent them accessing it, but someone with an addiction-fed determination will find a way around it. We need to get better at treating it as a serious medical problem, but that’s a much harder problem to solve.

      • biscuitswalrus
        3·
        5 months ago

        Yes, “them” was meant to identify my person. I know without the pokies another addiction probably would have been in its place, it’s just I can’t help but wonder how many other addictions can lose tens of thousands of dollars in a weekend bender.

        It’s horrible, but after 12 months of this I sometimes find myself thinking if suicide would have been kinder to the spouse and the rest.

        Mostly I wish the mental health route was just easier. Nearly nobody likes to talk about it since it is seen like a failing of the character, not a health issue like a virus. Don’t dare say anything at work. The GP simply says “well don’t do that then”. And friends evaporate at the mention of it. Family are often the cause of it.