X supports fewer pokies, $1 bets
The South Australia gaming industry is doing its part to keep anti-pokies leader Nick Xenophon and his SA Best party out of office in the March 17 election.
According to the Guardian newspaper, industry lobbyists have backed “not just one of the major parties but both of them, donating in almost equal measure to the South Australian Labor government and the Liberal opposition,” as well as mounting an anti-Xenophon campaign in local media.
Ian Horne, general manager of the Australian Hotels Association SA, told the Guardian the organization contributed almost $50,000 to the Liberal party, more than $43,000 to Labor, and $20,000 to Cory Bernardi’s Australian Conservatives in 2017. The association has also funded online ads including the No Way Nick website, which takes a hit at “Mr. X’s gaming madness.”
Horne said the industry has also exerted itself to “educate candidates about the value of the industry.” Alliance for Gambling Reform spokesman Stephen Mayne said candidates should no more accept donations from the gaming industries than from the tobacco industry.
“Seeing what pokies have done to Labor in Tasmania, they shouldn’t be cozying up to the pokies industry in SA,” Mayne said. “I would call for all candidates to boycott tainted pokies peddling and not appear at their functions.”
Horne replied that Mayne “wouldn’t have a clue” about the nature of the hospitality industry in South Australia.
According to CDC Gaming Reports, Xenophon is making slots a key campaign issue with current state Premier Jay Weatherill. He supports a buyback plan that would remove half of machines from pubs with more than 10 pokie machines and establishment of a transition fund for smaller and regional gaming operators that cut back on gaming. Xenophon also supports a $1 limit on betting and a ban on gambling industry donations.
“We’ve seen the AHA making large donations to both sides of the fence and the Australian Conservatives, and mounting a furious campaign against poker machine reform that SA Best is advocating for,” he said.
