Gambling Policy Review

Hauraki District Council has reviewed our Gambling Policy (Class 4 and TAB venues). We are legislatively required to review the policy every three years. This consultation is a special consultative procedure in line with Section 83 of the Local Government Act 2002 and Section 102 of the Gambling Act 2003.

Council is required to have policies in place around where and how venues can host electronic gaming machines (pokies), and standalone TAB venues. We have combined these two policies into one policy document, the Gambling Policy (Class 4 and TAB venues), which is required to be reviewed every three years. The policy was last reviewed in 2020 and was reviewed at the end of 2024.

We consulted with the community on the draft policy in late 2024, and submissions were presented to the Council at a hearing in November 2024. You can read the 2024 Gambling Policy on our website here.

• Council has retained a capped policy with a maximum of 9 venues and 69 gaming machines.
• The objective of the policy is to ensure Council and the Community have influence over the location of new class 4 and TAB venues by restricting the growth of gambling to contribute to a reduction in gambling harm.
• The policy now ensures venues cannot be located within 50m of the legal site boundary of a council administered children’s playground. Previously it was 50m of the playground. This ensures exposure to young people is minimised further.
• The policy does not allow clubs with class 4 venues to merge and continue with their licence for class 4 machines. This contributes to a reduction in gaming machine numbers.
• Overall there has not been a significant change in the policy.

The policy will be reviewed again in three years, as required by the Gambling Act 2003 and the Racing Industry Act 2020.