{"id":820,"date":"2020-09-01T23:29:24","date_gmt":"2020-09-01T13:29:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uberpokies.org\/?p=820"},"modified":"2020-09-06T23:32:13","modified_gmt":"2020-09-06T13:32:13","slug":"whittlesea-venues-lead-victoria-in-pokie-losses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uberpokies.org\/whittlesea-venues-lead-victoria-in-pokie-losses\/","title":{"rendered":"Whittlesea venues lead Victoria in pokie losses"},"content":{"rendered":"

Whittlesea venues lead Victoria in pokie losses<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation<\/a> recently revealed data regarding the venues in the state with the highest levels of pokie losses from 2019 to 2020. The town of Whittlesea claimed the unfortunate recognition of having four of its establishments featuring in the top 10.<\/p>\n

The Epping Plaza Hotel occupied the first spot on the list, its players lost $15.29 million on poker machines during the 2019\/2020 financial year. Mill Park\u2019s Plough Hotel was second, with its pokies claiming $15.04 million over the same period.<\/p>\n

Excelsior Hotel and Bundoora Taverner are both Whittlesea venues that also made the list with the former raking in $13.12 million via pokies, while the latter took $12.87 million from players.<\/p>\n

Pokie spend per day<\/strong><\/p>\n

The report broke down the data in several aspects, including a per-city ranking of daily expenditure on poker machines<\/a>. Whittlesea didn\u2019t claim the top spot but still managed to break the top 10. Here they are in descending order.<\/p>\n

Melbourne ($231,523)<\/p>\n

Kingston ($234,798)<\/p>\n

Wyndham ($290,567)<\/p>\n

Monash ($301,945)<\/p>\n

Whittlesea ($303,716)<\/p>\n

Hume ($306,016)<\/p>\n

Greater Geelong ($326,219) This city boasts the largest number of venues with pokies and most overall pokies on the list.<\/p>\n

Greater Dandenong ($326,882)<\/p>\n

Casey ($362,632)<\/p>\n

Brimbank ($391,518)<\/p>\n

A matter of concern<\/strong><\/p>\n

While some may have seen Whittlesea\u2019s high place on the rankings as something to be proud of, others were troubled by the news. The Whittlesea City Council has recommended changes to the pokie industry before COVID-19 restrictions are lifted. This request is backed by the fact that $1 billion has been saved by Victorian residents who were unable to access gaming establishments due to their temporary closure in April.<\/p>\n

Ms. Lydia Wilson, Whittlesea\u2019s Chair of Administrators gave her perspective, \u201cSome gaming venues are open until the small hours of the morning. Unemployment and stress caused by impacts of COVID-19 are at a record high, putting added pressure on vulnerable people succumbing to gambling harm.\u201d<\/p>\n

The city council recommends that gaming venues should be required to close at midnight and that this measure be implemented before their post-pandemic re-opening. A pokie buyback scheme was also proposed that would enable venues to create more family-friendly environments, similar to a program currently underway in the Australian Capital Territory.<\/p>\n

Crunching the data<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation\u2019s website contains a repository of research, statistics, and state-wide polling. Here are some pertinent facts relating to the state\u2019s gambling habits.<\/p>\n