New South Wales Increases Poker Machines Defying Promises to Reduce Them
- Poker machines in New South Wales increased from 87,094 to 87,644 from March to October 2023.
- Gambling losses from these machines exceeded $2 billion in the second quarter of 2023, significantly rising since the state election.
- Critics claim the government's failure to reduce machine numbers undermines their public commitments and exacerbates gambling-related harm.
Since January 2023, New South Wales has seen a significant increase in the number of poker machines, rising from 87,094 in March to 87,644 by October. This surge follows a state election where Premier Chris Minns pledged to reduce the number of machines in pubs and clubs. Despite the government reducing the cap on gambling machine entitlements by 3,000, clubs are still able to register more machines as they have not yet utilized their existing allocations. The increase in machines has primarily been noticed in Sydney's western suburbs, which also account for most of the gambling losses in the city. Reports indicate that over $2 billion was lost to poker machines in the second quarter of 2023, marking a $142 million increase from the previous quarter. Observers from organizations like Wesley Mission and experts at Monash University have criticized the government for failing to fulfill their commitment to cut poker machine numbers, stating that the situation represents a growing problem of gambling harm in the state.