Friday, March 23, 2007

Gambling provides big revenue to municipalities with casinos. But
politicians in Colwood also worry about the social problems that accompany
gambling. That is why the municipality decided last week to join the B.C.
Partnership for Responsible Gambling. The partnership, a product of the B.C.
Lottery Corporation, brings together casinos and municipalities like Colwood
that benefit from casino revenue, to look at ways of reducing the harm
caused by gambling. Colwood's 2007 share of revenue from the Great Canadian
Casino - which is actually in View Royal - is projected to be $410,000, up
$1,000 from last year. The gambling partnership's three objectives are to
reduce the incidence of problem gambling, reduce the harmful impacts of
excessive gambling, and encourage responsible gambling. Although less than
five per cent of gamblers are considered addicts, the partnership wants to
help them through information kiosks in gambling halls and by training
casino employees to intervene when addicts start spending too much. Another
aim of the responsible gambling body is to educate the public about how
betting odds are stacked against them, and to provide free counselling to
people with gambling problems. Colwood joins 10 other municipalities, mostly
on the Lower Mainland, that are already members. B.C's Gaming Policy and
Enforcement Branch conducted a provincewide problem gambling survey a couple
of years ago and found the number of gamblers is declining, especially
people buying lottery tickets. However the amount people spend on any kind
of gambling has risen in recent years, the study found, but is pretty
small - two-thirds of gamblers said they spend less than $10 per month. The
study estimates 4.6 percent of people who gamble "are problem gamblers,"
including 4.2 percent who are "moderate problem gamblers" and just under
half a per cent who have a severe gambling problem.
But that still translates into large numbers. Up to 177,100 people in B.C.
are considered problem gamblers, with up to 22,700 having a "severe"
gambling problem, the study found. B.C. has the highest number of people in
the country who potentially fall into the at-risk gamblers category - 11.1
per cent. About 10 per cent of them are young gamblers - 18 to 24 years
old - followed by low-income people with total household incomes of less
than $30,000, who account for nearly seven per cent. Greg Walker, the
lottery corporation's public affairs manager, wasn't sure how much the
responsible gambling parternship will cost Colwood taxpayers, but he noted
Vancouver has a $200,000 "social responsibility fund" used to deal with
problems caused by the Edgewater Casino in downtown Vancouver.