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Australians are one of the world's biggest losers when it comes to the Pokies.

Officially, we lose more per capita to poker machines than any other people in the western world.

Australia's 200,000 poker machines deliver billions of dollars each year to clubs, pubs and state governments. More than a third of it comes from problem gamblers and those who can least afford to lose money.

But from July, the anti-gambling lobby will have an important new ally in Canberra.

A new Senate will deliver the balance of power to those seeking gambling reform, including South Australian Senator elect Nick Xenophon.

This week Insight brings together the main players in the pokies debate.

Senator elect Nick Xenophon will come face to face with representatives of the gaming industry.

Businessman Peter Holmes a Court will explain what's happened since he and Russell Crowe scrapped all poker machines from his South Sydney Leagues Club.

And Tim Freedman, lead singer with The Whitlams, will describe how his passion against pokies inspired a song (he'll sing it too!).

Australians love a punt and thousands of us play the pokies, putting a massive $10 billion through the machines.

For those who get hooked, life can quickly spin out of control.

Tonight on Insight singer Tim Freedman plays his song "Blowing up the Pokies" and reveals for the first time on television the full story behind the hit song.

In the late 1990's five of Tim's close friends became addicted to pokies, one eventually committing suicide. "My band member was a lovely, funny, sensitive, talented fellow called Andy Lewis" says Tim Freedman. " He was in the Whitlams, he started the band with me and he was in the band until 1996 when he left and I notice that he was having trouble getting ahead because he was always putting his wages into poker machines."

"A year later, I found out that Andy had been working all week in a factory and had been on his way home to his partner and his child and had dropped into the pub and a few hours later he must have got into the zone that everyone talks about, his week's wages were gone and the next day he was found - he'd hung himself back at work overnight. And that's the sort of sad, dark story behind that song."

'The Zone' is discussed by several former gambling addicts who bravely front for tonight's show.

Laura Hicks, who ended up in jail due to gambling problems, describes the 'trance' you go into when you're in front of the machines. "It's like a junkie wanting their next shot, you do anything to get more money", she tells host Jenny Brockie. "You become like a different person."

Mark Bailey, another former addict, describes how he lost $200,000 on the pokies in 8 years.

Businessman Peter Holmes a Court explains why he and actor Russell Crowe scrapped poker machines from South Sydney Leagues Club.

"It's about all clubs who are trying to make a change and who are trying to make better facilities for their members with less negative impact on the community. I hope that the Federal Government, the State Government will help clubs make the transition.

Federal Minister Jenny Macklin joins Insight from Canberra and Holmes a Court calls on her to assist the clubs industry to diversify away from pokies. "I hope there's transition funding to allow this change for those who want to make it to happen easier. I think the people who are trying to make a change to make less negative impact on their community deserve help in this process."

Senator elect Nick Xenophon, who will be in Canberra in July, takes on representatives of the gambling industry,

"Only last week the Alfred Hospital in Melbourne announced it was setting up a dedicated suicide prevention unit for problem gamblers." he says. "In the last 6 months they've had 74 cases of people contemplating suicide directly because of their gambling problem.

Insight talks to all the main players in the pokie debate tonight.

Is reducing the number of pokies the answer to problem gambling?

Can the machines be made less addictive?

And is the Federal Government prepared to take on the industry?

Tune in to Insight, tonight 7.30pm on SBS TV
news.sbs.com.au/insight/
Insight
SBS
Tuesday 29 April 2008
A current affairs program presented by Jenny Brockie.
(Repeated: Fri at 1.30pm & Mon at 3.30pm)



Meet some of the guests who will be discussing the issues.


Tim Freedman
As lead singer and pianist for the multiple ARIA award winning Australian band, The Whitlams, Tim Freedman was inspired to write the song 'Blow up the Pokies' in the 90s as he watched a fellow musician struggle with a pokies habit.


Peter Holmes a Court
The very rich and high profile co-owners of the South Sydney Football Club, Russell Crowe and Peter Holmes a Court, have banded together to strip the club of all its poker machines. Executive Chairman Peter Holmes a Court joins us to discuss why they've decided to throw out the pokies from their Redfern premises.


Anthony Ball
Anthony Ball is the Executive Manager - Policy and Development with ClubsNSW. He works with ClubsNSW members, key stakeholders and government to develop policy in areas such as taxation, smoking, liquor reform and problem gambling.

Senator elect Nick Xenophon
Nick Xenophon will join the Senate in July after a career in state politics in South Australia since 1997. Nick has made the switch to the federal parliament to tackle the state governments on their reliance on pokies revenue to fund essential public services.

Ross Ferrar
Ross Ferrar is the Executive Officer of the Australasian Gaming Machine Manufacturers Association. The Association represents gaming machine giants such as Aristocrat Technologies and International Game Technology Australia.

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Blow Up The Pokies, The Whitlams
Garth Porter, producer and former songwriter and member of Sherbet:
"Someone I know had a problem with gambling and that song was an incredible inspiration for them to quit and so I have great admiration for Tim Freedman and how his songs are about our backyard and Sydney life"

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