Selwyn Times: May 16, 2018

SELWYN TIMES Latest Christchurch news at www.star.kiwi
Wednesday May 16 2018 3
News
Gaming machine increase likely
• By Emily O’Connell
A PROPOSED draft policy
could see an increase in gaming
machines across the district.
At its meeting last week, the
district council received the
Draft Gambling Venue Policy
and decided to put it out for
public consultation later in the
month.
The draft
policy included
an increase
in the current
machine cap
of 107 to 120.
“The existing
policy
Craig Watson
with a cap of
107 machines
was put in
place when the population of
the district was approximately
49,500 in March 2015,” it read.
However, the report said the
cap has been breached with the
approved number of machines
currently sitting at 114.
A survey of residents, undertaken
in November, indicated 58
per cent of the 236 people surveyed
say that gambling harms
the community or is a serious
problem.
In 2014, it was 41 per cent.
The survey also showed 74 per
cent of respondents disagreed
or strongly disagreed that the
number of gambling machines
in the district should increase
proportionally with population
growth.
District councillor Craig
Watson thought the cap of 120
poker machines was “arbitrary”
but agreed basing the cap off
population growth made it “too
high.”
He’s urging residents to make
submissions so the district
council can understand what the
community think is the “right
balance” between potential
harm and good.
“I think it’ll be an interesting
one, and I hope there will be
lots of submissions because it’s
a really important piece of our
social framework, how we deal
with pokies,” Cr Watson said.
The proposed draft policy
includes a limit of five machines
for new venues and a maximum
of five machines for venues
which are operating less than
five machines.
The report says information
from Department of Internal
Affairs and the Problem
Gambling Foundation
shows that in general Selwyn
communities lose about $3.5
million each year on poker
machine gambling.
Written submissions on the
draft policy can be made from
May 28 to June 29.
A hearing panel, consisting
of district councillors Bob
Mugford and Debra Hasson and
Deputy Mayor Malcolm Lyall,
will review the submissions and
make a recommendation to the
district council.
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REVIEW:
The Selwyn
District
Council
wants public
feedback on
its proposal
to increase
the district’s
gaming
machine cap
from 107 to
120.
In Brief
TWO PEOPLE FOUND
A hunter in his 40s was found
on Saturday afternoon after
rolling his ankle and activating
a personal locator beacon. The
man, who was overdue from
a morning hunting trip near
Benmore Hut, was picked up by
the Westpac Rescue Helicopter.
A woman, 40, was also found
after setting off for a training run
from Porters Pass. The woman’s
husband informed police on
Saturday evening that she hadn’t
returned. Oxford Land Search
and Rescue volunteers were put
into the area and were able to
find a light source. The woman
was picked up by the Westpac
Rescue Helicopter at 1.30am on
Sunday as volunteers could not
reach her.
FARM BUILDING FIRE
Firefighters were called to
contain a fire in Motukarara
at 5.30pm on Wednesday.
Lincoln chief fire officer
Jeremy Greenwood said it’s
still unknown how an old farm
building caught fire but it’s “not
deemed to be suspicous.” He said
units from Lincoln, Rolleston
and Governors Bay attended
the “well involved fire.” It took
firefighters two and a half hours
to contain the blaze. No-one was
injured.
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