Provincial health officer Perry Kendall says more treatment and prevention programs are needed to help the growing number of problem gamblers. He doesn鈥檛 name names, but he should 鈥� the most seriously afflicted gambling addict in the province is the sa国际传媒 government.
Unlike other gamblers, though, the government doesn鈥檛 lose 鈥� gambling puts $2.1 billion a year into provincial coffers. A fraction of the money 鈥� $135 million 鈥� is given as grants to charities and non-profit groups, payments former cabinet minister Ralph Sultan called 鈥渃onscience money.鈥� The rest, except for a miniscule $11 million set aside for responsible gaming programs, goes into general revenues.
No government, in sa国际传媒 or elsewhere, has worked up the gumption to shake off the gambling habit. Oh, it gets gussied up in all sorts of ways 鈥� call it 鈥済aming鈥� instead of gambling; run ads showing how your fondest dreams can come true; tell everyone how gambling revenues support schools and hospitals.
But no matter how you dress it up, it鈥檚 still tainted money. Gambling ruins lives, destroys businesses and breaks up families.
Apart from moral questions, gambling is not a logical thing to do. The chances of winning a Lotto 6/49 jackpot is one in 14 million. For Lotto Max, it鈥檚 one in 28 million. The odds of winning at a video lottery terminal are much higher, but they鈥檙e still very low.
To those who see gambling as an occasional form of entertainment 鈥� which is most people 鈥� little harm is done. But to a growing number of gamblers, it鈥檚 a destructive addiction, and the government profits from their addiction.
Kendall says the total number of British Columbians who gamble is dropping, yet revenues are rising. Fewer people are buying lottery tickets and visiting casinos and bingo halls, but the number of electronic gambling machines in sa国际传媒 has more than tripled, accounting for more than half of all government revenue from gambling. The health officer says the number of problem gamblers in sa国际传媒 grew from 13,000 in 2002 to 31,000 in 2007. The increasing revenues, then, are coming from those who can least afford it.
鈥淐urrent policies of gaming expansion are taking more from a vulnerable population 鈥� and directing these funds into general revenue, to provide products and services for those who are less vulnerable,鈥� Kendall said.
In opposition, the sa国际传媒 Liberals frequently lambasted the New Democrats for expanding gambling in sa国际传媒
鈥淭he minister talks about how much money she鈥檚 going to be able to raise from gambling, when we know that each problem gambler costs the government $30,000 to treat,鈥� said opposition MLA Christy Clark in 1997.
鈥淚 hope the minister has a whole bucket of money put away somewhere, because if she is implementing a new policy to deal with problem gamblers, and then her government expands gambling, it would appear logical that the government is going to need more money to deal with problem gamblers.鈥�
鈥淕ambling is a creeping sickness in society,鈥� said MLA Murray Coell, who later served in several cabinet positions. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think a government should balance its books on the backs of gamblers.鈥�
Despite changes in government, gambling continues to expand.
Government-sanctioned gambling began with a lottery to raise funds for the Olympics. More lotteries came along, ostensibly to finance sports and other community endeavours. The slide down the slippery slope accelerated when governments began directly putting gambling money into general revenues. The habit is hard to break.
It is unrealistic to expect the province to break its gambling habit during this time of economic restraint, but perhaps it should take the first step and admit it has a problem.
