Crown casino to introduce new gambling rules, call for pubs and clubs to follow suit

New rules for people playing pokies at Crown casino should be extended to pubs and clubs, gambling reform advocate Tim Costello says.

New rules that force punters to set loss limits when playing pokies at Crown should be extended to all pubs and clubs in Victoria, a gambling reform group says.

Reverend Tim Costello, who represents the Alliance for Gambling Reform, has applauded legislative changes that will introduce a mandatory precommitment scheme for Crown pokies.

This would mean visitors to the casino who want to play electronic gaming machines would have to set a maximum amount of time and money they are willing to lose, which experts say would help addicts avoid spiralling into massive debt.

Reverend Costello said it was important that appropriate maximum caps were set once the precommitment scheme begins, and that it should set a template for other poker machine venues.

There are calls for the loss limits to be extended to pokies in all venues.

“This is a historic step forward to implement all of the recommendations of the royal commission (into Crown),” he said.

“Obviously we would love the mandatory precommitment extended across to all (pokies) systems.”

“This is where it has to go. Seventy-five per cent of the world’s pokies that are in pubs and clubs are (located) in Australia.

“They are so accessible, people not planning to gamble, who might be just doing their shopping, that’s where huge damage continues to be done.”

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New rules for gamblers at Crown casino

Every Australian resident who plays pokies at Crown casino will have to set a limit on how much they are prepared to lose under new state laws.

And a new $1000 cap for cash transactions within 24 hours will be introduced, as part of sweeping measures to stamp out money laundering exposed at a royal commission into Crown.

Legislation set to be introduced to state parliament on Tuesday will tick off 12 recommendations from the royal commission, which also unearthed evidence of multi-day gambling binges and loan sharking.

The final nine recommendations accepted, but not yet adopted by the government – such as beefing up data collection and information sharing with police – will be implemented over the coming year.

Every Australian resident who plays pokies at Crown casino will have to set a limit on how much they are prepared to lose.

The mandatory precommitment scheme to be introduced at Crown means gamblers would have to set the amount of time and money they are prepared to spend on all electronic gaming machines at the casino.

This pokies reform has long been pushed by campaigners against gambling harm, who say if implemented across all gaming venues the changes would reduce the chances of people spiralling into massive debt.

Clubs and hotels have fought mandatory schemes in favour of voluntary ones, arguing forcing people to sign up could put people off visiting venues and push them to online gambling. A voluntary scheme trialled in Victoria had a relatively low uptake.

Gaming and Liquor Regulation Minister Melissa Horne said the new laws would be “the next step in our nation-leading reforms to ensure the disgraceful conduct uncovered by the royal commission will never happen again in Melbourne”.

“Some of the strongest protections in the world will now be in place at Melbourne’s Crown Casino – including mandatory precommitment,” she said.

The reforms have long been pushed by campaigners against gambling harm.

The mandatory precommitment scheme would need to be in place for casino pokies by the end of next year, but in order to develop “technologies that do not currently exist” Crown has until December 2025 to implement all reforms.

Other changes force the casino’s board and senior management to be accountable to the casino operator, instead of to a parent or holding company, and the regulator must approve anyone wanting more than a 5 per cent stake in the operator or holding company.

“We’re getting on with holding Crown to account and implementing every one of the royal commission’s recommendations,” Ms Horne said.