Palmerston North city councillor Pat Handcock: Sinking lid for pokies a sound move

Palmerston North city councillor Pat Handcock says compromises must be made when retrofitting cycleways and public transport infrastructure to existing roading networks. Photo / Kevin Bills Media

OPINION

It is hard to believe the last time I wrote a column for the Manawatū Guardian was in February. We are nearly a year into the current triennium.

It is a busy time of year for councillors, with many community organisations holding AGMs. Most will have some elected member attendance.

The council is also working on a draft of our 2024-2034 Long Term Plan, so councillors are attending various workshops as we explore assorted options to be included in the plan. Once a draft is completed, this will come back to elected members to approve for public consultation.

Last week we had a meeting of the Community Committee, and a significant agenda item focused on whether we would adopt a sinking lid policy for class-four gambling (pokie) machines for the city.

We currently have 194 pokie machines across 21 venues. To give some context to this, in 2004, the council decided to reduce the number of gambling machines each time the policy came up for renewal. This led to a reduction of about 200 machines, leaving the 194 remaining. Our most recent decision means that as businesses/clubs decide to discontinue, the number of machines will not be replaced. Hence the term ‘sinking lid’.

This is a clear indication that our council wants to see the number of machines reduced, but how rapidly that occurs will depend on the venues themselves. This approach means we are aligned with many councils across the country, and the reduction occurs in a way that allows beneficiaries of grants to find other sources of funding.

While there are various views on this, we do need to reduce this type of gambling, as it is particularly harmful to people and whānau who live in high-deprivation areas. Research tells us that those who can least afford it spend three times more than people who live in more affluent parts of our community.

It does not help that 18 of our 21 venues are in or near areas of high deprivation. It is also important to note that despite the reduction in machine numbers, the amount gambled has risen steadily.

At the council meeting last week, we approved the detailed design of the Featherston St cycleway. The cycleway is part of the city’s Urban Cycle Network Masterplan, approved by the council in September 2019. This project will attract 100 per cent Waka Kotahi New Zealand Transport Agency funding, so it comes at zero cost to residents and ratepayers.

The road (excuse the pun) to get to this point has not been easy, as retrofitting cycleways and public transport infrastructure to existing roading networks is difficult. Many compromises must be made to make it happen.

I attended several public workshops and was incredibly pleased with the level of genuine consultation with many stakeholders involved in the process. I am confident we will get a good outcome, and we will see a formal evaluation of the project once completed.

Pat Handcock is a Palmerston North city councillor.