New figures from the Victorian Gambling Regulation Authority show that residents of the Australian state lost .5 billion playing poker in the last fiscal year. According to the Victoria Age, losses rose almost 3 percent year-on-year. Brimbank saw the greatest losses, more than 0 million, followed by Casey and Dandenong, with 9 million and 7 million respectively.
Gabriela Byrne, who oversees a compulsive gambling prevention program, said the unemployed and refugees suffer disproportionately from the problem. “It’s time we really look at what we can do to curb this problem to help people who can least afford it to go down further in the spiral of gambling losses. I think the $1 bet limit that has been asked for many years would be a good start.”
