Pokies changes will 'take Tasmania backwards', gaming commission says

The Tasmanian government's new poker machine policies will "take Tasmania backwards" on harm reduction and make things worse for problem gamblers, the state's gaming regulator says.

Treasurer Eric Abetz announced a new suite of policies in January after the government stalled the rollout of a new mandatory pre-commitment card.

The new policies included ATMs in venues, a ticket-in ticket-out (TITO) system for poker machines, and facial recognition technology in venues to identify people on the self-exclusion scheme.

In letters obtained by the ABC under right-to-information laws, the Tasmanian Liquor and Gaming Commission outlined a range of concerns to Mr Abetz.

In a joint letter signed by the three commissioners, they confirmed Mr Abetz had not consulted with them prior to taking the new policies to cabinet for approval.

"The commission had not been consulted in any way concerning these measures," a March 31 letter reads.

"We are concerned that many will not deliver protections from gambling harm, but in fact will have the opposite effect, and take Tasmania backwards from where it currently is."

The commission has been directed to progressively implement the new policies by mid-2028.

Access to ATMs could create 'greater harm', commissioners say

The commission was particularly concerned with the ATM and TITO policies.

Under the changes, pubs and clubs will be able to install ATMs with a $400 withdrawal limit, fitted with facial recognition technology; at the moment, up to $200 cash can be withdrawn via EFTPOS.

"We see this initiative as potentially creating greater harm rather than minimising or preventing it," the commissioners' letter reads.

"Ready availability to additional cash beyond what is brought into a venue allows for an immediate response to chasing losses on [poker machines] and is why this is seen as such a harmful initiative."

During the policy announcement and in the letters, Mr Abetz said the TITO policy would require players to convert up to $100 cash into tickets to insert into the poker machines, without a limit on tickets.

This figure later increased to $200 per ticket.

Commissioners doubted whether this system would reduce harm.

"There is no evidence to indicate that ease and speed will, or is even likely to, result in protection from harm," they wrote to Mr Abetz.

"Notably, there is strong evidence to suggest that 'tap and go' and TITO systems can result in an increased 'spending effect' of up to 20 per cent."

They agreed with concerns the TITO system could introduce the risk of money laundering into Tasmanian venues.

Another new measure is to reduce the operating times of pokies venues from 20 to 17 hours a day.

The commission argued trading hours should be the same for all venues, rather than the potential for staggered opening hours, but this was not adopted.

"The commission has evidence of players, including those self excluded, moving from one venue to the next in the small hours of the day, a practice exacerbating harm to problem gamblers," they wrote.

Treasurer defends new policies

Mr Abetz met with the commission two days after they sent the letter, and wrote back on April 17 defending the new measures.

He described them as being proportional, practical and having "respect for personal agency".

"It is critical to look at the package as a whole, with each measure reinforcing the others, rather than as isolated initiatives," Mr Abetz wrote.

He disagreed with the commission over its comments on the TITO system, which he said "does not increase a player's total available funds".

"Rather, it removes the ability to continuously load machines using large quantities of coins and enables modern system controls," Mr Abetz wrote.

He argued the introduction of ATMs into venues would assist with the facial recognition technology and enable limits to be enforced.

Pokies losses increasing

After announcing the new policies, Mr Abetz faced extensive questioning in parliament over who he had consulted with.

The hospitality sector had consistently argued against the mandatory pre-commitment card, but appeared supportive of the new suite of policies.

In March, Mr Abetz told parliament that it was "an iterative process".

"If you talk to our hoteliers, the insurance policies they have to take, for example, for keeping huge amounts of cash on their premises can be removed," he said.

"That will be a financial burden removed from them."

Labor was supportive of the new policies in principle, having opposed the pre-commitment card.

Pokies losses have consistently increased since the end of COVID.

In May alone, players lost more than $17.7 million.

Venues were given ownership of their own poker machine licences from July 2023 when the government ended Federal Group's monopoly model.

Data from the Treasury Department showed the venue's profits have increased since the model changed, with a significant increase in the six months to December last year.

Nelson independent MP Meg Webb, who has campaigned heavily for pokies harm reduction including mandatory pre-commitment, said it was concerning that the commission was not consulted.

"The Rockliff government has intentionally chosen not to seek advice from the independent, expert gaming commission in developing new measures to reduce pokies harm," she said.

"And compounds this by deliberately refusing to heed the commission's strong warnings that the government's new measures will in fact cause more harm."