Treasurer praises plan to dump pokies

Federal Treasurer Peter Costello has praised Russell Crowe's proposal for poker machines to be removed from the South Sydney Leagues Club.

Crowe and his fellow South Sydney football club owner, Peter Holmes a Court, want the South Sydney Leagues Club to axe its poker machines, a move expected to cost the club $150,000 per month in lost gaming revenue.

Mr Costello praised the move and slammed the NSW government's plan to allow pubs to introduce the Keno lottery game.

"I reckon what Russell Crowe and Peter Holmes a Court are doing is fantastic," Mr Costello said.

"I think what they've announced is fantastic and all credit to them, I hope the club goes from strength to strength.

"We've got enough poker machines in Australia, we don't need any more, we don't need Keno in every club, what we've got to do is address the problems of problem gambling."

NSW Gaming and Racing Minister Graham West agreed to amend the Keno licence last week.

Mr Costello accused the NSW government of disregarding the human cost of problem gambling in return for a multi-million dollar revenue.

"What are these Labor government's thinking of? Having flooded Australia with poker machines we are now going to double up with Keno competitions," Mr Costello said.

"There's got to be an end to this, at the end of the day they (NSW government) are looking at gambling revenues of course but you have got to remember that there are human tragedies at the end of this."

At the end of the day it's the federal government that ends up footing the bill of problem gambling, Mr Costello said.

"You might be taking more tax out of them (gamblers) at a state level but we've (federal government) got to pick them up and look after them after they've lost their houses and incomes."

Queensland Premier Anna Bligh says removing poker machines would hurt schools and hospitals funded by them.

Ms Bligh said poker machine revenue was essential to funding Queensland's state schools and hospitals.

Gaming machine taxes and levies in Queensland are due to reap about $550 million this financial year.

"Frankly, we would have to have a very long, hard look the state budget if we were just going to remove poker machines," Ms Bligh said.

"I would prefer to be sitting down with the federal government, if Kevin Rudd was in, talking about some of the ideas he's got about how to manage that better."

News Added: 19 September, 2007

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