This week, Pub Charity refused Christchurch Cathedral’s application for pokie funding on the sole basis that it is associated with the Anglican Church. The news caused an outrage among local religious and political leaders. Now, Pub Charity is clarifying its funding requirements in order to clear its name. When the news first broke, Pub Charity CEO Martin Sheer did not seem entirely apologetic.

He accused the Anglican church of being hypocritical with regards to pokie grants, and stated that they cannot ‘have it both ways’. Now, Pub Charity has issued a more eloquent response. On July 27, Pub Charity announced that all applications are required to have the approval of their governing body before submitting an application.

Since the Anglican Bishop of Auckland announced that organizations associated with the church would no longer be accepting pokie grants, Pub Charity took that to mean that such charities were not given the approval to apply. As such, the trust has suspended all Anglican organizations from applying for pokie grants. Now, it is time for the Anglican Church to clarify things.

The Arch Bishop announced that his refusal to accept pokie grants only applies to organizations in Auckland, and those in other jurisdictions can seek funding from any organization they wish. According to representatives at Pub Charity, this is an important contradiction that needs to be cleared up before Pub Charity can begin granting any funding to Anglican charities. Pub Charity collects over $74 million in poker machine profits every year.

The money is then distributed to local charities across the country. Arts, education, sports and culture organizations benefit the most from this funding, providing the importance of poker machines in the community. The recent confusion over Anglican pokie grants has cast a shadow on Pub Charity’s work, and it hoped that the issue will be resolved soon.

About the Author

George Anderson
Author George, has over 25+ years’ experience in the Pokies and Casinos industry throughout Australia and New Zealand. Loves to research new Pokies games on the block and follows announcements from top industry providers about their upcoming releases. As soon as a new interesting pokie game appears on his radar, George is there to check it out and give you the scoop before anyone else and tell you about all casino sites where can play the latest game. Before this gig, George worked as Pokie game tester, making him an ideal candidate for this genre of work. He is also an animal lover and a proud owner of three dogs.