In 2013 Adelaide‘s SkyCity Casino has been given the go-ahead to double its number of poker machines to 1,500 and to introduce card-based cashless gambling facilities.
There is no onus on the casino to add any additional measures to help prevent problem gambling.
These new casino additions obviously have great appeal to the South Australian Government who will benefit financially from the increased income from the gambling taxes. This is something they will be keen to maximise in the face of dropping general and GST revenues for the state.
Ross Womersley (Executive Director of the South Australian Council of Social Services) says that the government has "concrete boots on, in relation to responsible gambling policy, because they’re… so reliant on gambling revenue". $40 out of every $100 in gaming machines comes from problem gamblers.
And while the income to government may increase in the short term the cost to both treasury and to community long term has clearly not been calculated.
One impact will be the increased demand placed on the limited Gambler's Help services in Adelaide, and the emergency relief programmes such as those operated by Marion Corps' Community Support Services.
Please pray about how you might respond to an issue such as this, and pray for our team as they continue to serve the people of South Australia that find themselves in need.
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