Coromandel Nat MP should clean up own gambling backyard

Attacks by National's Coromandel MP Sandra Goudie on gambling addiction treatment services have drawn fire from a gambling issues lobby group, who say Ms Goudie's own Thames-Coromandel area "has one of the worst pokie records in the country."

GamblingWatch Co-ordinator Dave Macpherson said Department of Internal Affairs statistics, released quarterly, "showed Thames-Coromandel to have the fourth-highest incidence of pokie machines of the 73 districts and cities in the country."

"Pokie machines cause over 80% of the gambling addiction presentations to treatment agencies, and even though Ms Goudie's home patch is only a small rural area, the 337 pokie machines there represent one machine for every 62 adults, compared with the national average ratio of 1:132."

"What is worse is that, while nationally pokie figures are dropping (down 1.3% in the last 6 months), the same period has seen an 8% increase in pokie numbers in Ms Goudie's own district," said Mr Macpherson.

"Thames-Coromandel has more of the most harmful form of gambling than most other parts of the country, and we hear nothing from Ms Goudie on that score."

"Instead, she concentrates on attacking addiction treatment agencies that are having to deal with the sorts of gambling problems that pokie machines regularly and consistently cause."

"We wonder if Ms Goudie is actually speaking on behalf of the National Party when she criticizes gambling treatment agencies and says nothing about the excessive gambling provision in her own patch?"

"Is that attitude reflective of National Party policy?"

"Or is Ms Goudie just a self-appointed spokesperson for the pokie machine industry?"

"Either way, National leader John Key would do well to clarify just what National's policy towards harmful gambling products is," finished Mr Macpherson.

ENDS

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