There has been a huge $130,661,758 increase in pokie-machine profits this year. Te Tari Taiwhenua – the Department of Internal Affairs – is linking September’s 116 percent increase on the June quarter to the end of Covid-19 restrictions. A Te Tari Taiwhenua spokesperson says the September quarter figures are higher than any of the June Read more
New Zealanders spent $2.4 billion on gambling last year – around $648 for every person in the country That was $49m higher than last year, but once inflation and population growth were taken into account it was a slight decrease on the previous financial year. Continue reading
Of the items you might expect to see in the workplace of a professor of public health, a poker machine is probably not one. The Dolphin Treasure pokie sits on a bench in Charles Livingstone’s office at Monash University in Melbourne, too heavy for even two people to move and emblazoned with gaudy dolphins swimming merrily Read more
The Mt Wellington Warriors league club made a stand against pokie money. It ripped the machines out of its Thompson Park clubrooms and turned its back on trust grants. “A lot of the parents can’t buy boots for their kids. They are saying they haven’t got the money, and that they can’t get them to Read more
The biggest pokie charity in the country has accused the Anglican Church of hypocrisy and leadership failure and is rejecting a funding application by the Christchurch Cathedral because one Anglican organisation has spoken out against gaming machines. Pub Charity chief executive Martin Cheer said a submission by an Anglican body seeking Pokie reform was a Read more
Nine out of every 10 people in Auckland want cuts to the number of poker machines in the poorest and most vulnerable parts of the city. A Curia poll found support from 87 per cent of respondents as lawmakers prepare to set new rules governing the availability of poker machines. Across the Auckland region there Read more
The Mana Party has led a protest against a South Auckland fast food shop that is operating pokie machines despite not having a licence. About a dozen people waved placards outside the Galaxy Takeaways shop in Otara last Saturday morning. The shop’s 18 pokies have been operating without a licence since it was revoked by Read more
“Groups should consider the ethics around accepting money from gaming trusts”, says captain Gerry Walker, head of Salvation Army Addiction Services. The Salvation Army will not accept money from poker machines. The Maori Party and the Greens are also sending the money back. They have rejected donations from the Todd Corporation. Todd Corporation owns Todd Energy and Todd Read more