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The Advertiser
22-07-2025
- Politics
- The Advertiser
Our gambling problem is infuriating and depressing. Here's how we can change the game
Federal Parliament sits for the first time this week after Labor's stunning electoral success, and with it comes a mandate for brave policy action. The first sitting closely follows the second anniversary of the release of the landmark Murphy Report into online gambling, a blueprint to take Australia from the world's biggest gambling losers to dramatically reduce gambling harm across our community. In those two years, there has been a depressing silence. The government has not even officially responded to the report despite promises that it would honour the legacy of the late Peta Murphy, the Labor MP who headed the parliamentary inquiry and who lost her life to cancer. Yet rather than being depressed, I am optimistic that the re-elected Albanese government will find a pathway forward to introduce real and lasting gambling reform. The reasons for my optimism exist both within the parliament and the government itself as well as out in the community. Firstly, within the government, courageous MPs are pushing the government to act on gambling reform - the key lightning rod for action is the recommendation for a ban on all gambling ads, phased in over three years. There are also many MPs across the Parliament - both new and re-elected - that are determined to fight for change. The new Communications Minister, Anika Wells, who negotiated the implementation of the royal commission recommendations into aged care to a large and diverse sector is also a factor. I believe she will be given a mandate to negotiate new changes that would at the very least see the partial implementation of the 31 recommendations of the Murphy inquiry report. An excellent start would be to implement a ban on inducements. When you try to give up gambling, betting agencies will reach out to you and offer you free bets or free tickets to the footy. The fact is betting agencies don't want customers who win when they bet, but they are hell-bent on keeping you if you are losing. Also, a strong ban on online gambling adverts would be another great starting point. Australians are assailed by 1 million gambling ads a year. Murphy's report recommended a phased shift to a total gambling ad ban. This could start with further restrictions on free-to-air TV advertising to ensure gambling ads are not viewed in general viewing times when popular programs such as MasterChef or Lego Masters are aired. It's a nonsense to think children only watch TV in the designated "child viewing times" before 8.30pm - when gambling ads are banned. And there is a strong case to start moving towards a national strategy that treats gambling as a health issue and a national gambling regulator - as the states and territories have repeatedly proven to be unable or unwilling to rein in the powerful and predatory betting agencies. Since the last parliament sat, a stream of significant research and polls makes a powerful case for change. And this is my second reason for optimism. Polling from The Australian Institute shows that 85 per cent of Australians want greater restrictions on gambling advertising and 76 per cent want all gambling ads banned. A key factor driving this is the fact our kids are being both overtly and covertly groomed by the gambling companies to bet. And research now shows that 600,000 kids - aged 12-17 - gambled a total of 18 million last year. This is a mind-boggling statistic that should provoke action. Other research has shown kids as young as 14 are being targeted on their social media feeds to download gambling apps. Parents I meet are furious that their kids are being targeted on social media by betting agencies and that they are being exposed to endless gambling ads because the two football codes, especially, have sold their souls to the bookmakers. The rate of sports betting is skyrocketing in Australia - it is growing at a rate of 40 per cent a year compared to growth in poker machines at 6 per cent. And it is particularly young men that are being drawn in. Roy Morgan research shows that 18-24 year olds are the most prevalent age segment to be betting on sports. And of those already, one in five have a gambling problem. The AFL itself has a growing crisis due to its embrace of gambling. A survey of player agents has revealed more than 76 per cent cite gambling among footballers as a grave concern. The Victorian government recently released figures (they are the only state to do so) on the social cost of gambling. It showed Victorians lost over $7 billion to gambling every year and the state government reaped $2.2 billion a year in revenue but the social cost (bankruptcy, marriage break-up, domestic violence etc.) totalled a whopping $14 billion. When you think Australians lose $32 billion to gambling every year, that social cost extrapolated nationally would skyrocket to an eye-watering $60 billion. It's time it became equally clear to our government. Federal Parliament sits for the first time this week after Labor's stunning electoral success, and with it comes a mandate for brave policy action. The first sitting closely follows the second anniversary of the release of the landmark Murphy Report into online gambling, a blueprint to take Australia from the world's biggest gambling losers to dramatically reduce gambling harm across our community. In those two years, there has been a depressing silence. The government has not even officially responded to the report despite promises that it would honour the legacy of the late Peta Murphy, the Labor MP who headed the parliamentary inquiry and who lost her life to cancer. Yet rather than being depressed, I am optimistic that the re-elected Albanese government will find a pathway forward to introduce real and lasting gambling reform. The reasons for my optimism exist both within the parliament and the government itself as well as out in the community. Firstly, within the government, courageous MPs are pushing the government to act on gambling reform - the key lightning rod for action is the recommendation for a ban on all gambling ads, phased in over three years. There are also many MPs across the Parliament - both new and re-elected - that are determined to fight for change. The new Communications Minister, Anika Wells, who negotiated the implementation of the royal commission recommendations into aged care to a large and diverse sector is also a factor. I believe she will be given a mandate to negotiate new changes that would at the very least see the partial implementation of the 31 recommendations of the Murphy inquiry report. An excellent start would be to implement a ban on inducements. When you try to give up gambling, betting agencies will reach out to you and offer you free bets or free tickets to the footy. The fact is betting agencies don't want customers who win when they bet, but they are hell-bent on keeping you if you are losing. Also, a strong ban on online gambling adverts would be another great starting point. Australians are assailed by 1 million gambling ads a year. Murphy's report recommended a phased shift to a total gambling ad ban. This could start with further restrictions on free-to-air TV advertising to ensure gambling ads are not viewed in general viewing times when popular programs such as MasterChef or Lego Masters are aired. It's a nonsense to think children only watch TV in the designated "child viewing times" before 8.30pm - when gambling ads are banned. And there is a strong case to start moving towards a national strategy that treats gambling as a health issue and a national gambling regulator - as the states and territories have repeatedly proven to be unable or unwilling to rein in the powerful and predatory betting agencies. Since the last parliament sat, a stream of significant research and polls makes a powerful case for change. And this is my second reason for optimism. Polling from The Australian Institute shows that 85 per cent of Australians want greater restrictions on gambling advertising and 76 per cent want all gambling ads banned. A key factor driving this is the fact our kids are being both overtly and covertly groomed by the gambling companies to bet. And research now shows that 600,000 kids - aged 12-17 - gambled a total of 18 million last year. This is a mind-boggling statistic that should provoke action. Other research has shown kids as young as 14 are being targeted on their social media feeds to download gambling apps. Parents I meet are furious that their kids are being targeted on social media by betting agencies and that they are being exposed to endless gambling ads because the two football codes, especially, have sold their souls to the bookmakers. The rate of sports betting is skyrocketing in Australia - it is growing at a rate of 40 per cent a year compared to growth in poker machines at 6 per cent. And it is particularly young men that are being drawn in. Roy Morgan research shows that 18-24 year olds are the most prevalent age segment to be betting on sports. And of those already, one in five have a gambling problem. The AFL itself has a growing crisis due to its embrace of gambling. A survey of player agents has revealed more than 76 per cent cite gambling among footballers as a grave concern. The Victorian government recently released figures (they are the only state to do so) on the social cost of gambling. It showed Victorians lost over $7 billion to gambling every year and the state government reaped $2.2 billion a year in revenue but the social cost (bankruptcy, marriage break-up, domestic violence etc.) totalled a whopping $14 billion. When you think Australians lose $32 billion to gambling every year, that social cost extrapolated nationally would skyrocket to an eye-watering $60 billion. It's time it became equally clear to our government. Federal Parliament sits for the first time this week after Labor's stunning electoral success, and with it comes a mandate for brave policy action. The first sitting closely follows the second anniversary of the release of the landmark Murphy Report into online gambling, a blueprint to take Australia from the world's biggest gambling losers to dramatically reduce gambling harm across our community. In those two years, there has been a depressing silence. The government has not even officially responded to the report despite promises that it would honour the legacy of the late Peta Murphy, the Labor MP who headed the parliamentary inquiry and who lost her life to cancer. Yet rather than being depressed, I am optimistic that the re-elected Albanese government will find a pathway forward to introduce real and lasting gambling reform. The reasons for my optimism exist both within the parliament and the government itself as well as out in the community. Firstly, within the government, courageous MPs are pushing the government to act on gambling reform - the key lightning rod for action is the recommendation for a ban on all gambling ads, phased in over three years. There are also many MPs across the Parliament - both new and re-elected - that are determined to fight for change. The new Communications Minister, Anika Wells, who negotiated the implementation of the royal commission recommendations into aged care to a large and diverse sector is also a factor. I believe she will be given a mandate to negotiate new changes that would at the very least see the partial implementation of the 31 recommendations of the Murphy inquiry report. An excellent start would be to implement a ban on inducements. When you try to give up gambling, betting agencies will reach out to you and offer you free bets or free tickets to the footy. The fact is betting agencies don't want customers who win when they bet, but they are hell-bent on keeping you if you are losing. Also, a strong ban on online gambling adverts would be another great starting point. Australians are assailed by 1 million gambling ads a year. Murphy's report recommended a phased shift to a total gambling ad ban. This could start with further restrictions on free-to-air TV advertising to ensure gambling ads are not viewed in general viewing times when popular programs such as MasterChef or Lego Masters are aired. It's a nonsense to think children only watch TV in the designated "child viewing times" before 8.30pm - when gambling ads are banned. And there is a strong case to start moving towards a national strategy that treats gambling as a health issue and a national gambling regulator - as the states and territories have repeatedly proven to be unable or unwilling to rein in the powerful and predatory betting agencies. Since the last parliament sat, a stream of significant research and polls makes a powerful case for change. And this is my second reason for optimism. Polling from The Australian Institute shows that 85 per cent of Australians want greater restrictions on gambling advertising and 76 per cent want all gambling ads banned. A key factor driving this is the fact our kids are being both overtly and covertly groomed by the gambling companies to bet. And research now shows that 600,000 kids - aged 12-17 - gambled a total of 18 million last year. This is a mind-boggling statistic that should provoke action. Other research has shown kids as young as 14 are being targeted on their social media feeds to download gambling apps. Parents I meet are furious that their kids are being targeted on social media by betting agencies and that they are being exposed to endless gambling ads because the two football codes, especially, have sold their souls to the bookmakers. The rate of sports betting is skyrocketing in Australia - it is growing at a rate of 40 per cent a year compared to growth in poker machines at 6 per cent. And it is particularly young men that are being drawn in. Roy Morgan research shows that 18-24 year olds are the most prevalent age segment to be betting on sports. And of those already, one in five have a gambling problem. The AFL itself has a growing crisis due to its embrace of gambling. A survey of player agents has revealed more than 76 per cent cite gambling among footballers as a grave concern. The Victorian government recently released figures (they are the only state to do so) on the social cost of gambling. It showed Victorians lost over $7 billion to gambling every year and the state government reaped $2.2 billion a year in revenue but the social cost (bankruptcy, marriage break-up, domestic violence etc.) totalled a whopping $14 billion. When you think Australians lose $32 billion to gambling every year, that social cost extrapolated nationally would skyrocket to an eye-watering $60 billion. It's time it became equally clear to our government. Federal Parliament sits for the first time this week after Labor's stunning electoral success, and with it comes a mandate for brave policy action. The first sitting closely follows the second anniversary of the release of the landmark Murphy Report into online gambling, a blueprint to take Australia from the world's biggest gambling losers to dramatically reduce gambling harm across our community. In those two years, there has been a depressing silence. The government has not even officially responded to the report despite promises that it would honour the legacy of the late Peta Murphy, the Labor MP who headed the parliamentary inquiry and who lost her life to cancer. Yet rather than being depressed, I am optimistic that the re-elected Albanese government will find a pathway forward to introduce real and lasting gambling reform. The reasons for my optimism exist both within the parliament and the government itself as well as out in the community. Firstly, within the government, courageous MPs are pushing the government to act on gambling reform - the key lightning rod for action is the recommendation for a ban on all gambling ads, phased in over three years. There are also many MPs across the Parliament - both new and re-elected - that are determined to fight for change. The new Communications Minister, Anika Wells, who negotiated the implementation of the royal commission recommendations into aged care to a large and diverse sector is also a factor. I believe she will be given a mandate to negotiate new changes that would at the very least see the partial implementation of the 31 recommendations of the Murphy inquiry report. An excellent start would be to implement a ban on inducements. When you try to give up gambling, betting agencies will reach out to you and offer you free bets or free tickets to the footy. The fact is betting agencies don't want customers who win when they bet, but they are hell-bent on keeping you if you are losing. Also, a strong ban on online gambling adverts would be another great starting point. Australians are assailed by 1 million gambling ads a year. Murphy's report recommended a phased shift to a total gambling ad ban. This could start with further restrictions on free-to-air TV advertising to ensure gambling ads are not viewed in general viewing times when popular programs such as MasterChef or Lego Masters are aired. It's a nonsense to think children only watch TV in the designated "child viewing times" before 8.30pm - when gambling ads are banned. And there is a strong case to start moving towards a national strategy that treats gambling as a health issue and a national gambling regulator - as the states and territories have repeatedly proven to be unable or unwilling to rein in the powerful and predatory betting agencies. Since the last parliament sat, a stream of significant research and polls makes a powerful case for change. And this is my second reason for optimism. Polling from The Australian Institute shows that 85 per cent of Australians want greater restrictions on gambling advertising and 76 per cent want all gambling ads banned. A key factor driving this is the fact our kids are being both overtly and covertly groomed by the gambling companies to bet. And research now shows that 600,000 kids - aged 12-17 - gambled a total of 18 million last year. This is a mind-boggling statistic that should provoke action. Other research has shown kids as young as 14 are being targeted on their social media feeds to download gambling apps. Parents I meet are furious that their kids are being targeted on social media by betting agencies and that they are being exposed to endless gambling ads because the two football codes, especially, have sold their souls to the bookmakers. The rate of sports betting is skyrocketing in Australia - it is growing at a rate of 40 per cent a year compared to growth in poker machines at 6 per cent. And it is particularly young men that are being drawn in. Roy Morgan research shows that 18-24 year olds are the most prevalent age segment to be betting on sports. And of those already, one in five have a gambling problem. The AFL itself has a growing crisis due to its embrace of gambling. A survey of player agents has revealed more than 76 per cent cite gambling among footballers as a grave concern. The Victorian government recently released figures (they are the only state to do so) on the social cost of gambling. It showed Victorians lost over $7 billion to gambling every year and the state government reaped $2.2 billion a year in revenue but the social cost (bankruptcy, marriage break-up, domestic violence etc.) totalled a whopping $14 billion. When you think Australians lose $32 billion to gambling every year, that social cost extrapolated nationally would skyrocket to an eye-watering $60 billion. It's time it became equally clear to our government.
AU Financial Review
19-05-2025
- Business
- AU Financial Review
Victoria's finances doing just fine in the echo chamber
Victorians rejoice. After years spent as the punching bag of every other state on economic management, Premier Jacinta Allan and Treasurer Jaclyn Symes are painting a pretty picture of what Tuesday's budget contains. Strangely, it's a sense of optimism about the state of Victoria's finances previously only espoused in the establishment by Greg Jericho, chief economist and Tweeter-in-chief at The Australian Institute.
