Gambling Venues Policy

Thank you to everyone that has provided feedback, submissions have now closed on the Gambling Venues Policy.

In total, we received 635 submissions on the policy and heard oral submissions on Thursday 29 October. The Council decision has been rescheduled for April 2021.

The Council has had a Gambling Venues Policy in place since 2004. It has actively managed the number of machines available for Class 4 gambling in Wellington.

The Council is seeking to renew its Gambling Venues Policy under the Gambling Act 2003 and we want to know what you think of the options we are proposing:

• Option A: Implement a sinking lid to allow no new venues or machines in Wellington. This is the Council’s preferred option.
• Option B: Reduce the caps on the maximum number of machines by 87. This option will also require the Council to undertake some administrative changes including changes to the zone descriptions to align with the 2019 Representation Review. It also proposes to reinstate the Primary Activity clause, so that machines can only be located in venues with a valid on licence and restricted designation as R18.
• Option C: No change to the existing policy, or another change we haven’t considered.

To provide you with more context for the proposal, we have made the following documents available in the document library:

• Statement of Proposal - outlines these options with further information about each of the options.
• Social Impacts on Gambling paper which provides background research that influenced our options proposed. Also available in an accessible version. This also provides information on where the proceeds of gambling are distributed in the Wellington region.

How can I share my views?

We would like to know what option you prefer, and why you prefer that option over the other options provided.

You can complete a submission form online below or download and print the PDF version and post it into the Council for free.

You have until 5pm, Thursday 1 October to share your views with us.