Betting on harm: Australia can’t afford to gamble on inaction

Words by Senator Steph Hodgins-May and Katherine Copsey MP 

For too long gambling companies have profited off the misery of everyday people. The Greens say enough is enough.

Did you know that Australians lose more on gambling per person than anyone else in the world? Gambling harm sees a staggering $25 billion gouged from us each year. But these aren’t just statistics – it’s families torn apart; homes gambled away and lives shattered.

Now kids are caught in the crossfire, increasingly targeted by gambling ads, mobile games, and relentless promotions. We know gambling ads cause enormous harm, and they must be banned, just like tobacco ads. Experts want this, the overwhelming majority of Australians want this, and the Greens want this. But the Victorian Labor government is refusing to act.

The Labor government clearly doesn’t have the guts to stand up to the bookies and ban gambling ads, but the Greens do. We know you are sick to death of having ads rammed down your throat as you’re trying to watch sports with your family.

That is why the Greens recently introduced our Ban Gambling Ads Bill into the Senate to ban gambling ads across TV, radio, online and in print, consistent with landmark inquiry recommendations chaired by the late Peta Murphy MP.

It is now up to the major parties to vote for real action on gambling harm and make this bill law.

But our action to end gambling harm does not stop there. Earlier this year, the Victorian Greens secured key reforms, including $50 daily default limits on poker machines. These predatory machines are specifically designed for addiction and cause significant harm in our community. Here in the City of Port Phillip, player losses totalled more than $29.4 million just last year! Securing daily default limits is a win for our community and is a crucial step to ending gambling harm.

The gambling industry has an outsized influence on politics. Australians deserve leaders who put public health over private profits, yet we know that each year the Labor and Liberal parties receive millions of dollars in political donations from mega gambling corporations. That’s unacceptable. The Greens have been pushing for an end to political donations from gambling companies for decades, but the old parties refuse to bite the hands that feed them.

It’s time for a coordinated, national approach to tackle gambling harm. State-level wins, like those in Victoria, show that progress is possible, but federal action is essential to regulate online harm. The federal government must make a choice: will they stand with the gambling lobby, or with Australians who want a safer, healthier future?

The Greens know where we stand, we don’t take their money, and we won’t stop fighting for the change our communities need. •