B.C. a bad bet to help gambling addicts

Lindsay Kines and Rob Shaw, Times Colonist October 20, 2009

British Columbia has one of the worst records in the country when it comes to spending gambling profits to help people with betting addictions, and it's the only province cutting support even further this year, a Times Colonist analysis shows. Although B.C. is set to rake in a record $1.16 billion from lotteries, casinos, bingo and online betting this year, it plans to spend only $4.6 million -- or less than half of one per cent of its profits -- to counsel and assist troubled gamblers.

That's the lowest level among seven Canadian provinces with problem-gambling programs.Nova Scotia, which tops the pack, spent five per cent of its $140 million in gaming profits last year on problem-gambling services. It's adding more money this year. Ontario, Quebec, and Manitoba are also investing additional cash to help addicts, while Saskatchewan and New Brunswick plan to hold the line on spending. (Alberta and Newfoundland lump their gambling, drug and alcohol treatment services together and were unable to provide a breakdown. Prince Edward Island announced plans for a responsible gambling program last year, but could not provide budget figures.)

Among the provinces, only B.C. has announced a cut to problem-gambling services, slashing the budget to $4.6 million from $7 million.Housing and Social Development Minister Rich Coleman said he approved the 34 per cent cut because the program spent only $5.4 million last year."So what we've done is we've put basically in the budget what we think will be used," he said.

Coleman said B.C. likely provides a smaller portion of its gambling profits to help addicts because there isn't the same demand here."So if people don't ask for the help, or we don't have clients come forward that need the help, then we don't expend the money."

But Coleman's arguments fly in the face of his government's own research. A Problem Gambling Prevalence Study released this year shows the province has a higher rate of problem gambling than all but two other provinces. The study estimated that 4.6 per cent of B.C.'s population -- or 159,000 people -- are problem gamblers. (more)