A club in South Australia has submitted a proposal for new poker machines, and it is being heavily debated. As the club is located in an area with ‘higher-than-average levels of problem gambling’, responsible gambling advocates are believe that no new pokies should be brought into the community.
The club in question is the South Australian Jockey Club (SAJC), which wants to build a new restaurant and gaming venue at St Clair. In order to build the venue, the SAJC will have to apply for a Social Effect Certificate. This will ensure that the new games would benefit the public interest without contributing to any rise in problem gambling rates. Uniting Communities has spoken out against the new venue.
Spokesperson Mark Henley states that the club would be located in an area that already has high levels of problem gambling. Since higher numbers of pokies in a community are associated with higher rates of problem gambling among its residents, Mr Henley is concerned about the well-being of local community members.
The SAJC’s lawyer John Firth has fought back, stating that the club is only relocating its poker machines. This is due to the fact that the SAJC has recently closed one of its clubs. Mr Firth argues that the SAJC isn’t really bringing new pokies into the community. Instead, they are simply re-introducing games that already existed in the community not long ago.
"Re-introducing machines will not have much, if any, impact on problem gambling in the community," he argues. The SAJC will take part in a hearing before the Liquor and Gambling Commissioner. The club will make a case for the new venue and its poker machines while opponents will argue against it. The first part of the hearing will take place today at Chesser House, with additional hearings being held Wednesday through Friday.
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