Bundy punters spend more on pokies

BUNDABERG gamblers poured $412,000 more into the city's poker machines in January than they did for the same month in 2010, despite there being 50 fewer machines operating in the area.

The statistics released from the Office of Liquor and Gaming Regulation (OLGR) show that last January, punters spent $3,445,834 through the pokies.

This compares to $3,857,893 in January this year, which followed a stressful start to 2011, as the Christmas floods struck the region and led to government flood relief payments to individuals and families.

But Matthew Rockloff, deputy director of the Institute for Health and Social Science Research, said it was hard to say whether the 11% increase was a direct result of flood relief payments being fed into gaming machines.

“When people have discretionary income to spend, they'll spend that money on entertainment products,” he said.

Dr Rockloff believed the gaming and entertainment industries were “recession resistant” and did relatively better during tough times.

“People tend to cut back on expenses, but what they don't cut back on is alcohol and gambling,” he said.

He said gambling machines offered a “temporary escape” from problems, without the person having to think about what they have lost.

“Products you get in the short term can make you feel better,” Dr Rockloff said.

“They see it as a way to manage their emotions.”

Due to the volatility of month-to-month comparisons, Dr Rockloff said, it was not possible to call the statistics a reliable trend.

Community advocate Mary Walsh said although it was hard to prove, when disasters struck, poker revenue often spiked.

“We did have an increase in poker machine activity when the last lot of stimulus packages came out, and some of this went into poker machines,” she said.

Mrs Walsh said during hard times, some might see gambling as a way of “de-stressing”.

“Whether that's right or wrong, you can't be judgemental,” Mrs Walsh said.

A spokesman from OLGR said they could not comment on whether or not the increase was related to flood relief payments.

“In addition, OLGR is not aware of any research or evidence that links gambling expenditure to the occurrence of natural disasters,” the spokesman said.