PM Hipkins must have had a brain wave the past week - he stumbled in his dreams on a way to help pay for the hurricane which he announced today. It's a Special Lotto Draw !?
So who buys lottery tickets? Mostly those from lower income families. The Otago Daily Times reported at the end of last year that "Nearly 70 percent of Lotto shop sales are made in the poorest half of the community". It's not technically a tax, since its "voluntary". Well, not really - many of those who gamble have an addiction - its a compulsion.
In our richest Decile 1 & 2 communities, $12.5 million was spend on Lotto in 2021. In our poorest Decile 9 & 10 communities, like Ōtara-Papatoetoe in Auckland, people spent $151 million in 2021. That's 12 times more. Aside from money, isn't the government meant to be in the business of helping those with addictions, not encouraging them?
Paying for hurricane relief by taking money from addicts and the poorest members of our community takes the cake.
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