CGA welcomes North Shore vote for balance

The CGA welcomes the decision of the North Shore City Council to reject a proposed sinking lid on gaming machines and venues.

“The sinking lid would inevitably have reduced community funding on the North Shore and would have done nothing at all to reduce the incidence or prevalence of problem gambling among North Shore people,” the Chief Executive of the Charity Gaming Association Francis Wevers said today.

“The CGA and some of the charitable gaming trusts which operate venues on the North Shore pointed out the current economic situation has already had a significant impact on the amount of money available for community groups – any further reduction in either he number of venues which are permitted to host gaming machines or reductions in machines numbers will have a direct impact on support for those groups.

“We have offered to work with the North Shore City Council to help them identify the community’s funding needs and priorities and to make sure that assessment gets into the hands of decision makers so they can make informed decisions.

“The charitable gaming sector has huge potential to make a difference to local communities by supporting worthwhile community projects, provided it still has a stable fund raising base in pubs and taverns in the community,’ concluded Francis Wevers.