Andrea Dawkins MP | Greens’ Gambling spokesperson
Should the people of Tasmania choose a parliament in 2018 that supports the removal of pokies from pubs and clubs, there is ample time for businesses, which currently rely on the misfortune of those playing the pokies, to become viable.
If the letter is sent to Federal Group next year informing them that their stranglehold on pokies in Tasmania is over and that from 2023 they have to be removed from pubs and clubs, there are training services available to help that transition process.
The current model is unsustainable and relies on the poorest Tasmanians losing more than they can afford to keep the pokies industry going.
There is a role here for the THA to change direction from peak pokies lobbyists to instead spearheading the campaign to resolve the skills shortages currently experienced in the hospitality sector.
With a booming visitor economy Tasmania needs more motivated, skilled hospitality workers to service the visitor economy. This is the fork in the road where the THA could materially assist the industry it purports to represents.
The Greens will continue to campaign for a CSL contribution from pokies in casinos as well as $1 bet limits on those machines.
One wealthy Sydney family has steadily climbed the rich list on the back of the worst bet in history and Tasmanians have been all the poorer for it.
Enough is enough.