Fewer ‘pokies’ in the community
11/4/2006
The number of licensed gambling operators, venues and gaming machines are continuing to decline, according to the latest gambling licensing statistics for pubs and clubs, released today by the Department of Internal Affairs.In the three months to March 31 2006 licence holders declined 2.5 per cent on the December 05 quarter and by 10 per cent on the year ended March 31, 2006. There were five per cent fewer gaming machines over the same 12-month period.
Licensed gambling operations in pubs and clubs |
Date | Licence holders | Venues | Gaming machines |
31 March 2006 | 513 | 1721 | 21,026 |
31 December 2005 | 526 | 1747 | 21,343 |
30 September 2005 | 535 | 1,770 | 21,684 |
30 June 2005 | 553 | 1,801 | 21,846 |
31 March 2005 | 568 | 1838 | 22,159 |
31 December 2004 | 584 | 1,850 | 22,231 |
31 December 2003 | 672 | 2,031 | 22,734 |
30 June 20031 | 699 | 2,122 | 25,221 |
31 December 2002 | 729 | 2,137 | 24,330 |
31 December 2001 | 785 | 2,129 | 21,012 |
31 December 2000 | 860 | 2,065 | 17,679 |
1 Machine numbers peaked in the quarter before the Gambling Act was passed.
Internal Affairs Department Director of Gambling Compliance, Mike Hill, says the figures show that the Gambling Act 2003 is controlling the growth of gambling, one of the law’s purposes.
“The impact has been principally on the shape of the industry with a number of operators on the fringe, leaving the sector,” Mr Hill said. “Returns per machine are starting to grow as the sector becomes more efficient.”
Machine numbers peaked in the June 2003 quarter before the Gambling Act was passed. Since then gambling operators have declined by 27 per cent from 699 to 513 at March 06, venues are down by 19 per cent from 2122 to 1721 and there were 17 per cent fewer machines, down from 25,221 to 21,026.
Christchurch City, which now includes the Banks Peninsula District, has the most machines of any territorial authority – 2099 or almost 10 per cent of the nation’s total – with Auckland City second with 1749 machines or 8.32 per cent. But greater Auckland, which includes Waitakere, Manukau and North Shore cities makes up almost 19 per cent of the nation’s total with 3905 machines.
The Gambling Act 2003 introduced a much stricter licensing regime and reduced limits on the numbers of machines allowed in venues. In general, venues licensed at 17 October 2001 can have up to 18 machines, while others can have up to nine. The Act also gave communities a say, through their local authorities, which can make policies preventing or limiting new venues and controlling the expansion of existing venues.
Further information, including numbers of venues and machines by territorial authority and the changes in these numbers, is available from the Department’s website at: Gaming Statistics
Media contact:
Mike Hill, Director Gambling Compliance, tel 04 495 9449
Trevor Henry, Communications Advisor, tel: 04 495 7211, cell: 0275 843 679
