Canadian Gambling Declines in Recession Despite Foes' Predictions

Canadian gambling revenue figures show that people tend to gamble what they can afford, as the number of gamblers and amount gambled has dropped with the onset of the recession.

Critics of gambling often predict that the recession will cause problem gambling to sprout and rapidly rise, as desperate gamblers, unable to pay bills or control impulses, gamble even more in risky attempts to win the mortgage or bill money. But reality doesn't show anything like that bleak picture; the latest results from Canada show declines in gambling that continue to indicate gamblers act under a controlled budget, adjusting for lower incomes.

Statistics Canada says gambling revenue was down across the country in 2008, as activity on lottery tickets, video lottery terminals, and horse racing all declined. Even more telling, the number of households participating in gambling in some form dropped dramatically, from 74 percent to 52 percent, as budgets no longer included entertainment like gaming.

Henry Pold, senior analyst for Statistics Canada, said that the video lottery terminal had been dropping in use for a couple years, news to Chicken Little gaming foes who had denounced VLTs as "addictive as crack cocaine."

"The economies in some provinces are doing well so people have a bit more money to spend on frivolous things," said Pold. He noted that the numbers proved gambling is linked to disposable income.

Pold found that households earning over $80,000 gambled twice as frequently as those earning less,with a much higher average expenditure of $800 annually.

"It's not that big a chunk of their discretionary income," Pold said. "Blowing $100 at a casino is no big deal if you're making $100,000."