Law backdown lifeline for gaming clubs

– Jaimee Damon
DANDENONG gaming venues have been thrown a lifeline with the State Government backing down on its proposed gaming legislation.
Its proposal for poker machines would have seen the end to many of Dandenong’s smaller sporting and community clubs, with them being forced to bid against larger venues for machines they already operate.
Liberal MP Gordon Rich-Phillips said he was inundated with letters from committee members of local clubs pleading with him to lobby against the legislation.
“Smaller clubs were concerned they would have been squeezed out financially as they do not have the thousands of dollars in reserve it would have taken to bid for the machines they already operated,” Mr Rich-Phillips said.
The new arrangement will allow clubs the opportunity to buy all of their existing gaming machines, up to a maximum of 40, at a price determined by each club’s share of average gaming revenue.
Dandenong Club general manager Daniel Martin said that apart from the club’s dilemma about how to acquire poker machine entitlements “we still welcome the government’s decision to back down and implement a system that will help ensure all clubs’ survival”.
He said the new legislation provided assurance for all clubs that they would receive a guaranteed allotment of poker machines.
“The decision the Dandenong Club will have to make is, are we better off going to auction and bidding for all of our machines or are we better purchasing the first 40 and then bidding for the rest?” Mr Martin said.
“We are waiting for more clarification from our industry bodies and government.”
He said the club’s lobbying with the backing of local politicians was a key factor in securing the new system.