Pokies must be debated

The revelation that a clear majority of Tasmanians want fewer or even no pokies in our state shows the Hodgman Government would be wise to consider some reform.

A majority of survey respondents want to see no or fewer poker machines in Tasmania. Picture: Chris Pavlich.

LABOR’S proposal to remove poker machines from pubs and clubs across Tasmania might have failed as an election strategy. But the revelation today that a clear majority of Tasmanians want fewer or even no pokies in our state shows the Hodgman Government would be wise to consider some reform.

Labor Leader Rebecca White had hoped her scorched-earth anti-poker machines policy would win over enough voters in the left-leaning Hobart-based seat of Denison to give her a path to becoming the state’s premier in the state election last March. As it was, Liberal candidate Sue Hickey’s personal popularity was enough to carry her across the line in Denison alongside the now-Attorney-General Elise Archer. Labor was then stuck just one seat short of being able to form government, with supply and confidence from the Greens. (And yes, Labor will today deny they were ever going to do such a deal – but are they really fooling anyone?)

Meanwhile, all Ms White’s pokies policy did was fire up the hospitality industry which — correctly — believed the viability of their businesses was under threat. The result was a heavily funded anti-Labor campaign that ensured the Liberals’ message was the dominant one that voters had heard before heading to the ballot box on March 3 last year.

It is unlikely, however, that poker machine reform was the issue that swung the vote to the Liberals. Polling a week out from election day showed that a clear majority of voters across the state (and seven in 10 of those polled in Denison) preferred Labor’s policy on pokies. However, just 14.3 per cent said it was the issue that would influence their vote — and most of that group were rusted-on Labor or Green voters. More than twice that number said health was the thing that would determine how they cast their ballot, and about the same number said it would be the economy.

And so while executives from Federal Group (the company that has a monopoly on poker machines in this state) are entitled to claim — as one does today — that Tasmanians cast their vote on pokies policy in last year’s state election, the truth is they really didn’t.

One thing that is often forgotten is that the Liberals also took a shake-up to poker machines policy to the election. The core of that policy was to end the generous monopoly arrangement, and allow individual venues to operate pokies in pubs and clubs after 2023. The Liberals also committed to removing 150 poker machines from across the state within five years.

Today’s Future Tassie survey result is another example that perhaps Tasmanians would prefer the government moves more quickly, and decisively. Just one in five of the more-than 1300 respondents to the survey — that canvassed a wide range of issues — believed the number of poker machines in Tasmania was “about right” or that there should be more.

CALL FOR STATE TO DUMP POKER MACHINES

And so regardless of the politics that played out at the last election, it is clear there is overwhelming community support for wholesale change in this area. Considering also our state’s unique history in this space, it is important the Government is open and willing to have a proper and transparent discussion about the future of gaming machines here and the details of any future deals underwritten by taxpayers.