As SkyCity Auckland prepares to add 230 new poker machines to its gaming floor, New Zealand government officials are thinking up ways to combat the potential increase in gambling spending. As such, the country’s harm minimisation systems will be put up for review this month in order to ensure that gaming operators are putting player needs first.
Chris Tremain, the Minister of Internal Affairs, has announced that the review will take a look at the effectiveness of class four gambling in pubs and casinos. It will also consider the feasibility of pre-commitment systems and player tracking. Pre-commitment has been pushed by responsible gambling advocates for quite some time.
Over the course of the past year, pre-commitment has been touted as a solution to problem gambling, as it allows players to get their spending habits under control. By allowing players to set their own betting limits, it is believed that pre-commitment will help to reduce problem gambling rates – but there are some concerns that the system may not be effective. Internal Affairs’ review will get to the bottom of this issue.
"The review addresses one of my priorities, which is to enhance protections for problem gamblers in pubs and clubs,” says Mr Tremain. I have also made a commitment to the M?ori party to consider the introduction of harm minimisation technology and fairer regional distribution as well as ways to reduce the number of pokie machines in low socio-economic areas."
The Maori Party welcomes the review, as Co-leader Te Ururoa Flavell is one of the country’s biggest harm minimisation proponents. When he originally introduced the Gambling (Gambling Harm Reduction) Amendment Bill, he suggested that pre-commitment would an effective measure in reducing problem gambling rates. The provision was removed from the bill, but the review will finally give pre-commitment a fair chance.
About the Author
