Pokies and Slot Machine Information

Liberals to banish 20% of Victorias pokies

July 15, 2006 on 4:54 pm | In Slot machine overviews |

The Victorian Liberal party has announced a plan to remove around 5,000 slot machines from that state if they gain power in next years state election.

“A Liberal Government will cut the number of gaming machines in hotels and clubs by 20% when the current licences expire in 2012 … a reduction of 5,500″

Victorian Liberals

The end of the current pokies regime in 2012 in Victoria is a long way away. If the party is elected, it might opt to change its mind in any case.

Other policy announcements include:

“introduce a maximum cash payout of $1000 for a gaming machine win, the balance as a cheque.”

This is interesting, but of dubious value. Most gaming machine wins are below this level.

“Maintain the ban on ATMs on the gaming floor and ensure daily limits apply.”

In Queensland at least, ATMs are often found just outside the gaming floor area - hardly a disincentive to withdraw cash. Applying daily limits could have an impact.

“Maintain the ban on 24 hour poker machine venues.”

Unfortunately we are unable to locate any research on whether this actually has a positive impact.

The stigma attached to gaming machines will remain in place for as long as the various governments choose to regulate them in the way they do. As mentioned previously, the gaming machines themselves are merely advanced tax collectors in their current setup. By changing the payout levels to 98%+ and reducing maximum bets you could have any number of gaming machines - with considerably less social imact.