Pokies cause of misery
We're asked to believe that more pokies will actually benefit Bendigo because they will provide revenue for community sporting clubs and other groups.
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Yet, according to the Productivity Commission, 40 per cent of profit from pokies Australia wide comes from the problem gamblers that these machines are expertly designed to hook.
Are we sure that we’re happy to subsidise our clubs by heaping more misery onto the families, friends and work mates of people whose addiction means they can’t say “No”?
Rosemary Glaisher, Golden Square
Civil rights go up in smoke
I have to raise some concerns as to the new anti-smoking policy to be instigated on August 1. At underaged sporting events smoking is banned within 10 metres of any outdoor sports venue during an underage sporting event.
By law, smoking is banned within 10 metres (about two car lengths of any public outdoor sporting venue during an organised under-18s event.
This ban includes training or practice sessions to prepare for an organised underage sporting event and breaks or intervals during the course of the event, training or practice session. The ban also applies to outdoor dining and drinking areas located within 10 metres of an outdoor sporting venue during an organised underage sporting event or training session.
Sporting venue staff, operators and volunteers will not be expected to enforce the ban and are not empowered to do so. Signage must be displayed.
Compliance with the ban is expected to occur through increased public awareness and changed community expectations.
Inspectors authorised under the Tobacco Act 1987 may provide information about, and when necessary enforce, the ban.
Now, I don’t smoke but this law seems impossible to control or enforce. It appears hypocritical when smoking is legal and the government obtains taxes from the sale of tobacco.
I play golf, does that mean those juniors under 18 who play at any time will create a ban on the organised golf day? It seems so.
Bill Collier, Golden Square
Party turns on Turnbull
The "prime minister" of the right wing of the Liberal Party, Peter Dutton, has corralled Malcolm Turnbull, who is desperately trying to hang onto his job, into joining him to make some changes to the citizenship laws.
This is coming from the Coalition, a party that has been in government for 15 of the last 21 years.
What took you so long, Peter? Your party has had 15 years to do something. Why was this not seen as important previously?
The continual embarrassment of our non-right wing prime minister by others has gone past the point of embarrassment. It is demoralising watching it.
Ken Price, Eaglehawk
Ads saturate coverage
Advertising by online sports betting companies has reached saturation levels.
Recent research has found that more than 90 per cent of children can recall having seen a sports betting ad.
Many children have a very detailed recall of the content of betting ads – including brand names, plot lines and "deals".
A 2012 study found that 528 individual sports betting ads were played some 20,000 times on free-to-air television, a figure that rose significantly on pay TV channels.
More than one in six ads broadcast during AFL matches in 2016 were for gambling companies.
Online gambling corporations spent between $230 million and $330 million on advertising in Australia in 2015, up from $91 million in 2011.
Let's hope federal cabinet acts in the community's interest and reins in this bombardment.