Nova Scotia Gaming logo

NSGC Summary of Results 2020-21

Letter from the CEO

Good work is happening in gaming.

Did you know that every time a customer plays one of our games, the profits are invested back into our province? Nova Scotia Gaming returned $106.4 million to the province of Nova Scotia in 2020-21.

Community support is an important part of what we do, and our contributions extend beyond the bottom line. The Nova Scotia regulated gaming industry helps to fund sport, arts and culture in communities throughout the province. We raise funds through designated lottery products for sport and culture. $4.2 million was raised through Support4Sport for amateur athletes, coaches, officials, and community sport organizations in Nova Scotia. Another $4.0 million was raised through the Support4Culture program to fund arts, culture and heritage across the province in 2020-21.

Additionally, we moved to an online platform to host four Support4Communities fundraising seminars, featuring experts from the fundraising industry. Nova Scotia Gaming also spent $6.2 million this year on prevention, treatment and education, collaborating with important partners like the Department of Health and Wellness. We are proud to support causes that are important to Nova Scotians.

Throughout 2020-21, Nova Scotia Gaming and our operators, Atlantic Lottery and Casino Nova Scotia, as well as our many ticket and video lottery retailers, responded to the COVID-19 pandemic. This included closing casinos, pausing VLT operations and adjusting business practices to adhere to guidelines outlined by federal and provincial health authorities. We continue to work together to follow health official’s guidance in reopening the business and will continue to make decisions that are in the best interest of all Nova Scotians.

I am pleased to present the 2020-21 Summary of Results which demonstrates that NSGC, along with its operators, continue to deliver on our most important mandate: providing important and sustainable revenue to the province while maintaining an unwavering commitment to social responsibility.

I would like to acknowledge the hard work and dedication of the staff at NSGC for their commitment to ensuring this industry is entertaining, sustainable and responsible. I would also like to recognize the members of our Board of Directors, who are an intricate part of our organization, for their leadership, guidance, and their high standards of governance.

Sincerely,

Bob MacKinnon
President & CEO, Nova Scotia Gaming Corporation 
Bob Mackinnon

Who Does What

There is good work happening in Nova Scotia’s gaming industry. Find out how we all work together to keep the regulated gaming industry sustainable and socially responsible in Nova Scotia.

Unprecedented Times – COVID-19 Global Pandemic

  • NSGC, Casino Nova Scotia and Atlantic Lottery continue to work together to follow health officials’ guidance and precautions.

  • NSGC worked with Office of L’nu Affairs to help lessen impacts to First Nation communities.

  • NSGC along with Casino Nova Scotia and Atlantic Lottery responded to the COVID-19 global pandemic, closing casinos, pausing VLT operations and adjusting business practices.

    • Administration fees for inactive terminals were not collected.
    • Expiry date for ticket lottery products were extended to 18 months to allow players more time to validate tickets and receive prize payouts.
    • Collections of payments were not completed to provide retailers with additional cash flow.
    • Ticket Lottery prize payout process was changed to allow for virtual prize payouts.
    • Accumulated interest was paid to players on prizes over $10,000, for those who could not process a major win due to the pandemic.
    • NSGC prepared the For Profit Regulated Gambling Sector Reopening Plan in collaboration with Restaurant Association of Nova Scotia. Available here.

Where the Money Comes From

Where the money comes from chart

$362.5 million

Total revenue

Ticket Lottery (70%)

$252.3 million

Video Lottery (25%)

$91.3 million

Casinos (5%)

$18.9 million

Delivering Economic Results

We’re proud that 100% of gaming profits is funding what matters most to Nova Scotians, helping to fund important programs and services including healthcare, roads, schools, culture sector and sports.

In 2020-2021, the Payment to Province was

DeliveringEconomicResults_Icons_Revised@2x

Economic Impact

coins and province icon.

$106.4

Million in payment to province

sales ticket icon.

$29.5

Million in retailer commissions

ticket icon.

1,006

Ticket lottery retailers

key icon.

205

Video lottery retailers

heart in hand icon.

$6.2

Million in prevention, education and treatment

coin icon.

$8.8

Million in wages and benefits

toolbox icon

400+

Nova Scotians employed

Where the Money Goes

Where the money comes from chart

Prizes (38%)

$137.3 million

Payment to Province (29%)

$106.4 million

Other (10%)

Taxes (less payroll taxes) (5%): $19.8 million
Community Contributions (3%): $9.7 million
Prevention, Education & Treatment (2%): $6.2 million

Retailer Commissions (8%)

$29.5 million

Salaries & benefits (6%)

$23.1 million

Operations (9%)

$30.5million

Social Responsibility

Healthy Play brochures

19th Annual Responsible Gambling Awareness Week

The campaign achieved all of its key objectives. 46% of Nova Scotians surveyed felt that the Responsible Gambling Awareness Week made them think about their own gambling, or someone else’s.

Responsible Gambling Programs and Training

NSGC delivered a comprehensive suite of responsible gambling programs, including working with Atlantic Lottery to provide responsible gambling training for staff working in the industry. All Casino Nova Scotia staff also completed responsible gambling training as part of their annual training.

Healthy Play quiz on ipad
  • Shifted to online meetings to continue to conduct regular meetings throughout the 2020-21 year with NSGC’s Board and Committees;

  • Delivered quarterly, financial and community reports;

  • Provided updates on strategic and operational matters to the Minister responsible for Part I of the Gaming Control Act; and,

  • Held regular meetings with Atlantic Lottery and Casino Nova Scotia as well as stakeholder groups.

Player sitting at slot machine.

Incident Reporting

Reported 106 incidents related to Section 24(1)(e) of the Gaming Control Act. Most incidents were resolved through prescribed procedures, while 5 incidents that occurred in the fourth quarter remain open due to COVID-19 restrictions.

Responsible Gambling Assessment Program

The program is designed to ensure new products, marketing, initiatives, promotions and programs are reviewed using objective risk-based criteria. In total, 545 assessments were completed before they were released into market. A scheduled, bi-annual review of the program was conducted in 2020-21.

Online Transparency

Maintained webpages on Nova Scotia Gaming Corporation’s website outlining performance management expectations for Atlantic Lottery and Casino Nova Scotia. This illustrates our commitment to transparency in how we manage all our lines of business.

Operations

In total, 40 Atlantic Lottery players won a prize of over $100,000 in 2020-21, right here in Nova Scotia. Due to COVID-19 Nova Scotia winners are currently celebrating their big wins on a video call with Atlantic Lottery staff. Worry not, there is still lots of excitement from the winners when they receive their big cheque!

Lotto 649 icon.
cheers icon.

Thrilled Lotto Max fans with 35 Maxmillions events during the year.

operations icon.

Many new games were launched in 2020-21, particularly in the popular Digital Instants category. A total of 29 Digital Instant Games and 3 Video Lottery Games were launched.

health icon.

Casino Nova Scotia operations were adjusted to comply with public health orders.

Nova Scotia Gaming is responsible for the conduct and management of the regulated gambling industry. We do this effectively by establishing appropriate strategic goals for our operators and setting performance measures.

View the performance measures for:

Community Programs

Contributed to causes important to Nova Scotians through three community programs.

support for sport icon.

The program has far-reaching impacts. We were proud to highlight their achievements at the Support4Sport Awards, held virtually in June 2021.

MILLION

Contributed this year

88

Athletes supported

4

Coaches/Officials supported

128

Community sport organizations supported

Since Inception

The program has contributed over

MILLION

to support amateur athletes, coaches, officials, and community sport organizations.

125,000

NOVA SCOTIANS EACH YEAR

Tasia McKenna

Technical Director & Performance Coach,
Basketball Nova Scotia

“Take advantage of the opportunities in front of you.” That’s the advice Tasia McKenna offers athletes and aspiring coaches as they pursue their goals in sport. She speaks from experience, having carved out a successful five-year varsity career at Lakehead in Thunder Bay, Ontario, before turning her passion into her profession by becoming Basketball Nova Scotia’s (BNS) technical director and performance coach in 2016.

Support for culture lcon.

Supporting arts, culture, and heritage in communities across Nova Scotia, Support4Culture is another designated lottery program.

MILLION

Contributed this year

203

Artists and organizations supported

Since Inception

Introduced in 2013, this program has
contributed more than

MILLION

to date for aspiring and established artists and community arts, culture and heritage organizations.

Highland Arts Theatre

Sydney, N.S.

“Cape Breton has such a rich history of arts, culture, storytelling, dance, and music. All of those elements haven’t necessarily had a home to come to roost, and theatre I think is so perfect for that,” says Wesley Colford, the Highland Arts Theatre’s artistic and executive director. “It’s so many pieces of a magical mosaic and has given an incredible home for the incredible artists that Cape Breton has become known for internationally. Here, we’ve given them a place to grow from the ground up and cultivate their craft.”

Support for communities icon.

This program provides supports to community organizations looking to have a greater impact in their communities.

THOUSAND

Contributed this year

In 2020-21, we offered NSGC’s annual Support4Communities fundraising seminars virtually, with a learning series of online workshops featuring experts from the fundraising industry. 70 people participated in these seminars.

Since Inception

We have now raised more than

THOUSAND

for good causes.

Additional Community Support

$1m

Harness Racing Industry

$100k

Sport Nova Scotia

$50k

Exhibition Association
of Nova Scotia

$50k

VIP Coach Program

$50k

Cultural Federation
of Nova Scotia