COST OF BETTING

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 19135, 2 October 1936, Page 7

COST OF BETTING

SOUTH AUSTRALIAN BILL £l4 PER HEAD A YEAR ADELAIDE, Sept. 19. Tiic amount risked by South Australians in. wagers with, bookmakers and on. the totalisalor in the financial year ended Juno 30. reached the astonishing total of nearly .£7.oooXo—that is Cl 4 a head counting every man, woman and child in the State. The number of bets made with the bookmakers, judged by the number of stamped betting tickets issued, was in the vicinity of '^OXOO,OOO. Compared with the previous year, the volume of betting increased by about 33 1-3 per cent. Another interesting disclosure is that the special taxation on betting!—both bookmakers and totalisntor- meant, a net gain to State revenue of £163.000, after the racing clubs had received £IOO,OOO as their share from the investments. The following table shows the position : Volume of helling.—Total turnover of bookmakers, £6,000,000; number of stamped betting tickets issued, 30.000.000: totalisalor turnover, £624,000. What the Government received.— Bookmakers' turnover" tax (net. gain), £66,000. Petting ticket, tax. .C 74.000. Totalisalor lax. £28,000. What the race clubs received :—Turnover tax share. £SOXOO. Totalisalor percentage, £50.000. At'£'6,ooo.ooo the bookmaker's turnover shows an increase of about £1,500.003 on the previous year. The total invested on the totalisalor is only about. C34X!.3 greater. Nearly half ilie totalisalor turnover went through the machines at Wayville. illustrating the enormous popularity of night, trotting. Approximately three-quarters of Ibe money handled by South Australian bookmakers is received in belling shops, and the greater proportion of (he shop betting is on inter-Slate meetings.