NSW has been rocked by the uncovering of one of its dirtiest secrets: poker machines across the state are used by organised criminals to launder money.

This is the moment when gambling reformers and law enforcement agencies can work together to use one initiative to address two major problems. Removing the ability to put cash into poker machines will stop money laundering in its tracks. To do that requires every poker machine in the state to be modified to only accept a card or a digital wallet as the payment. Those payment systems must be linked to bank accounts or debit cards, which themselves are linked to a proven identity. This puts the power to manage gambling time and spending back into the hands of customers. A card or digital wallet can require people to set sensible loss limits – with the default being the Tasmanian Government model of $100 a day, $500 a week, $5,000 a year. People could choose to set their limit at $0 if they want.

People can also set their time limits so that machines will stop working after a set time, and the person cannot just move to the next machine. If they are still within their limit but need to top up funds, the card/wallet cannot be used for 30 minutes so as to encourage people to take a break. Improved activity statements can be generated, and winnings quarantined. If someone has self-excluded, their card or wallet will not work.

We’re calling for NSW to follow and improve on the Tasmanian Government’s introduction of universal cashless and harm reduction payment systems for gambling.

The evidence is clear, gambling after midnight is a significant risk factor for harm. As far back as 2010, the Productivity Commission recommended the earlier closure of suburban poker machine venues in recognition of the increased risk of harm during late-night gambling. Successive reports, including the NSW Government’s own research, demonstrate that people already significantly harmed are over-represented in pubs and clubs after midnight. ¹²³

There is no reason for suburban pubs and clubs to continue operating poker machines in the early hours of the morning, when we know people are at their most vulnerable. It is abundantly clear that a simple measure can prevent and minimise harm from late-night gambling. It is also clear that most NSW residents support this measure.

We’re calling for all poker machines in pubs and clubs to be turned off between midnight and 10am.

“From a grassroots community perspective, Local Government should have a lot more involvement in reducing the ever-increasing harm caused by poker machines. State Governments now need to take urgent action to make this happen.” Pat Daley OAM, former Northern Beaches Liberal Councillor and Police Crime Prevention Officer

Transparency and accountability are central to a strong democracy. To effectively prevent and reduce gambling harm, we must first understand where that harm occurs. Although poker machine losses are an imperfect proxy for gambling harm, they are embedded in the formula which ranks communities at risk. The formula uses socio-economic indexes, the number of machines per capita, and machine loss rankings to rate an area. This determines whether a venue is in an area that is more impacted by gambling. The community has a right to also access this data.

Currently, the Liquor & Gaming NSW only publishes the losses for an entire local government area (LGA). In many cases, when there are small numbers of gambling venues in an LGA, neighbouring LGA data is combined. This means it is impossible to determine the losses at any meaningful, granular level. The data is published half-yearly, and files are separated by venue type and released in overlapping cycles, making it difficult to analyse.

“The Australian Productivity Commission in its report on gambling argued that there is a strong case for improving the transparency of data on gambling. The ability of researchers to measure the harm caused by electronic gaming machines, and the effectiveness of measures to reduce that harm, is constrained by the difficulty (and in some cases, the impossibility) of obtaining access to data on gambling. This is a particular problem in relation to data on electronic gaming machines (EGMs). The ideal arrangement would be one in which, every six months, each gambling venue published weekly data on the number of EGMs, gross profit, and average expenditure per customer.”
Professor Don Weatherburn PSM Ph.D. FASSA, National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre

We’re calling for all NSW poker machine data to be transparently published by venue at least every six months.