A publican in north-east Victoria is questioning an understanding local councils have with businesses that results in poker machines effectively being banned. He says with the challenging economic times, there is a need to consider other options. The local mayor says she would be surprised if there was community appetite to change the current situation, with the shire being well known for its 'pokies free' status.
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00:00Peter Cooke has worked in hospitality since he was 16, but he's never seen times this
00:09difficult for the industry.
00:10I think we're all struggling.
00:12The visitations are down and when people get here they don't seem to have the same sort
00:16of money to spend.
00:19He says installing poker machines at his hotel in Yakondanda would help him make a profit.
00:24We made the decision that through food and beverage and our accommodation is that we
00:29could make a go of it, you know, and we could survive on those three revenue streams.
00:36Now in difficult times, we're now saying, well, geez, that's not quite enough.
00:42But in Yakondanda, pokies are banned and have been since 2001.
00:47The Indigo Shire says it's known for being pokies free and isn't aware of any community
00:52appetite to reconsider its position.
00:56Peter Cooke says the localised nature of the ban puts his pub at a disadvantage to
01:00those in neighbouring shires.
01:03Why should I be different to the hotel that's 30km down the road or 20km down the road?
01:07Indigo Shire is one of nine councils in Victoria without poker machines.
01:11Many of them say it's crucial they make those decisions and not the state government.
01:16If that money was spent on poker machines, I guarantee small businesses within the towns
01:21would probably close.
01:22Local charities or the local council themselves bear the cost of the negative impact economically
01:29and socially of the introduction of poker machines.
01:32Peter Cooke says he understands the resistance, but he believes tough times call for a change
01:38of thinking.
01:39We don't want to become a gaming venue.
01:42We just want to be a small country hotel that can produce enough revenue to provide this
01:47service.