Ms SPENCE (Yuroke) — I rise to speak on the Gambling Legislation Amendment Bill 2015, and I am very pleased to do so. The bill will make a number of amendments, as we have already heard, to the Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation Act 2011 (VRGF act), the Casino Control Act 1991 and the Gambling Regulation Act 2003. These amendments will implement the government’s election commitments and address the recommendations made in reports by the Victorian Public Sector Commission, the Victorian Auditor‑General’s Office and the Responsible Gambling Ministerial Advisory Council.

Of the amendments in this bill, I will focus my comments on the amendments to the Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation Act. Importantly, the bill will give the Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation an advocacy and policy role. While there are no provisions in the VRGF act that preclude the foundation from undertaking an advocacy and policy role in fulfilling its functions and meeting its objectives, the second‑reading speech says that the foundation would not have such a role.

Currently the foundation plays a significant role in supporting Victorians affected by problem gambling and fostering a greater understanding and awareness of responsible gambling in the wider community. The foundation works to address problem gambling through community education and awareness‑raising activities that foster responsible gambling and promote problem gambling help services, and by undertaking research to inform best practice in problem gambling treatment, prevention and responsible gambling communication. So it is quite a broad area that the foundation works in.

This bill enables the foundation to draw on its knowledge, experience and expertise, and the relationships it has formed to provide informed advice to the Minister for Consumer Affairs, Gaming and Liquor Regulation to address problem gambling in Victoria. So whilst this government recognises that the gambling industry is an important part of our community that provides significant jobs, entertainment and tourism opportunities, it is also committed to developing programs and policies to address the insidious nature of problem gambling, with a specific focus on the minority of people who develop addictive and destructive behaviours. We know that gambling addiction can have catastrophic consequences for some people, and whilst gambling is a legitimate recreational activity, the risks must be managed and the addiction must be treated.

We know that not all who gamble are problem gamblers, but some are, and the consequences of problem gambling can be incredibly devastating. These include financial hardship, relationship breakdown, involvement in criminal activity and alienation from friends and workplaces. Problem gambling can also be a factor in family dysfunction and domestic violence, including spouse and child abuse.

This government is committed to providing support to problem gamblers, to working with industry and problem gambling experts to prevent and minimise harm, and to supporting health professionals and family services to minimise and treat the harm caused by problem gambling. Providing the Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation with an explicit advocacy and policy role will assist in developing programs and policies to address problem gambling, and thereby minimise the harm that is caused. This is particularly important to me and to my electorate, because unfortunately the effects of problem gambling are far too often seen in our community.

In a recent report by Hume City Council the extent of this problem was very clear. The report, Update on Gaming Related Matters — May 2015 to September 2015, provided an overview of gaming statistics for the financial year ending June 2015, comparing them to statistics for metropolitan Melbourne and Victoria. The statistics are very concerning. The report notes that the number of venues in the Hume municipality with gambling facilities is 14. So there are 14 venues that have electronic gaming machines, and there are 814 electronic gaming machines operational across those venues. This is a recent increase from the previous figure of 805, and it means there are 6.1 gaming machines per 1000 adults in the Hume City area. If we compare that figure to metropolitan Melbourne, it is slightly higher; metropolitan Melbourne has 5.8 machines per 1000 adults.

According to data that was released by the Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation, the net electronic gaming machine expenditure within the municipality for 2014–15 was just shy of $105 million. That is an enormous amount of money, and it represents a 3.1 per cent increase on the expenditure for the previous year, which was just shy of $102 million. It also represents a 6.3 per cent increase on the
2012–13 expenditure, which was just shy of $99 million.

The statistics actually get more concerning when we look at the losses per machine within the municipality. Within the Hume area the losses were $130 365 per machine. In metropolitan Melbourne the losses were $101 207 per machine. Statewide the losses were $96 837. Therefore within Hume the average loss per machine was $33 528 more than the average across the state. This represents a 25 per cent greater loss on the machines within Hume. If we look at what that equates to per adult within the municipality, it was $755 per adult. The figure in metropolitan Melbourne was $590 per adult, and statewide it was $564.

Within Hume municipality, which has a low socio‑economic demographic, there are considerable pressures already within the household, and yet the expenditure on electronic gaming machines is very disproportionate compared with the rest of the state. The unfortunate reality is that the reason the losses are greater per machine and per adult is quite simply because more money is being put in them. That is very concerning to me.

Hume City Council, according to the report, had the seventh highest level of net electronic gaming machine expenditure in 2014–15 when compared to other municipalities across Victoria, with Brimbank, Casey and Dandenong being ranked in the top three. In light of that information, and in light of the provisions of the bill, I congratulate all of those who are currently involved in the promotion of responsible gambling. This is important to our state, and it is important to my community. The bill will assist in increasing the informed advice provided to the minister to increase awareness and address responsible gambling issues. I commend the bill to the house.