More than $100,000 was lost on gaming machines in the Melton electorate every day, on average, last financial year.
A new Monash University report released last week shows that $39.1 million was spent on the electorate’s 407 machines in the 12 months to June.
Of the venues located in Melton City and Bacchus Marsh, the most money was spent at Mac’s Hotel, with 82 machines collecting $10.9 million.
Outside the electorate, a total of $22.3 million was spent at The Club and WestWaters Hotel in Caroline Springs.
Local MPs, including Melton’s Don Nardella, were last week presented by lobby group Poker Machines Victoria with a full-sized cardboard poker machine highlighting the money spent in their electorates, as Monash researchers push for stronger action against problem gambling.
WHAT DO YOU THINK? Post a comment below
Dr Charles Livingstone said there was a correlation between gambling losses and the number of gaming machines in disadvantaged areas.
He said there was a need to reduce the size of gaming venues and restrict the amount of money people can gamble with to make gaming machines “harmless fun”.
“What we have got in suburban pokies venues … is machines were you can
easily lose $600 an hour,’’ Dr Livingstone said.
“There should be maximum bets of $1 limiting losses to $120 per hour. We need to look at solutions and there are suggestions $1 bets are the way to go.”
Pokies reform advocate Paul Bendat, who commissioned the Monash report, said it meant that “no member of the Victorian Parliament will be able to pretend they don’t know of the harm being suffered by the people they represent”.
The Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation’s most recent data shows that $19.3 million has been spent on Melton City’s gaming machines since July, while $2.8 million has been spent in Moorabool.
