Rebekha Sharkie (Mayo, Centre Alliance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

Australians are fed up with being bombarded by gambling advertisements.

We are sick and tired of seeing people, including our young people, treated as revenue streams by gambling companies, sporting codes and governments.

We have reached the point where seven out of 10 Australians agree that gambling advertising should be banned.

I don't understand why everyday Australians are having to push leaders who are resistant to this change. This should already be law.

That is why I am introducing my Interactive Gambling Amendment (Ban on Gambling Advertisements) Bill 2023.

I appreciate the member for Clark's support in seconding this bill and his tireless advocacy for reducing gambling harm, and also the support of Senator Lambie and Senator Pocock for this bill in the other place.

This bill would amend the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 to ban advertising of licensed interactive gambling services such as telephone and online gambling, whether on television, radio, in print or online.

This ban does not cover excluded wagering or lottery services.

Further, exemptions are provided for political communications, business document, and antigambling advertisements (including gambling harm reduction advertisements).

And publication, broadcast or datacasting which is accidental or incidental is permitted, as are publication, broadcasting or datacasting in other limited circumstances.

Expanding the existing bans on gambling advertising is justified given gambling harm is now a glaring public health issue.

Australians lost more than $25 billion in 2018-19 on gambling, causing untold mental, social and financial harm to individuals, families, workplaces and communities.

This figure has undoubtedly increased since that time, given the dramatic growth reported in the interactive gambling sector during COVID and with the advent of people using their phones.

Online and telephone services now enable people to lose their homes while they are sitting in their homes.

With gambling companies spending $287.2 million on gambling ads in 2022, and an average of 948 gambling advertisements airing per day on free-to-air television alone in Victoria, we have reached saturation point. It is ridiculous.

Enough is enough.

We know that Australians are increasingly targeted by gambling advertising, which is particularly targeted at young people, who are being told to bet with their mates—quirky advertising that's funky and focused on young people.

The Australian Institute of Family Studies has found that three in four Australians have gambled at least once in the past year, with almost half of them at risk of harm from betting.

The institute's 2023 report highlights concerning links between gambling advertising and increased betting.

As I said, young people in particular are reportedly more likely to bet on impulse or gamble more after viewing these ads. These ads are overwhelmingly targeted at them.

It's pretty sad when we get to a point where kids know all about this. They know about all the apps. They ask their parents if they've got the apps, whether they can place a bet. And a thousand times a day—we are kidding ourselves if we don't think this is causing harm.

We need to wean governments and sporting codes off their reliance on gambling revenue. And we need to provide adequate supports for the mental, social and financial wellbeing of individuals and families in our society who are suffering from gambling harm.

We need to show some leadership, ban predatory gambling advertising and develop evidence based strategies to treat gambling harm as a public health issue, instead of treating people like cash cows.

I look back in time to 1992. That was the time when in this place we banned cigarette advertising. It's a legal product if you're over 18 years of age, but we recognised the public health harm of this. Since then, the major political parties have not accepted donations from cigarette companies. We need to do the same with gambling. We need to see this as an inherent harm, and particularly harming our young people. And it's going to take some courage by government to do this, but I say: let's be like 1992; let's make that have been in this place, because it is equally harmful. It is a public health issue—it's actually a public health emergency. I know there are young people who are harming, who have taken their lives because they've just got so much into debt, or who can't even watch a game of sport anymore for the constant bombardment of advertisements. And it's on all the channels, and that's why this bill will target it, whether it's on free-to-air, on radio, in print or, indeed, on streaming services and social media. We need to make sure that there's no corner that allows this to continue to happen.

I would like to provide the rest of my time to the member for Clark, who is seconding this bill. I commend this bill to the House.

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is the motion seconded?

Andrew Wilkie (Clark, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm very am pleased to second the member for Mayo's bill, the Interactive Gambling Amendment (Ban on Gambling Advertisements) Bill 2023, because, quite frankly, Australians are sick to death of gambling advertising. It's no wonder, when the study commissioned by the Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation found that more than 70 per cent of Australians want gambling advertising banned, and there's no wonder why, almost every day, members of the community tell me they're well and truly over watching gambling being promoted and normalised, often diminishing their enjoyment of sport and impacting dangerously on their children.

That last point matters so very much, because way too often Australian children are bombarded with targeted advertising campaigns on billboards, on sports uniforms, on the TV and on their phones and other devices. Good grief, the adverts are everywhere. Nor, of course, is this just a matter of spoiling the game. No. Ultimately, the more the predatory gambling companies advertise, the more they prey on the vulnerable and the more they stoke addiction, just like the tobacco companies once did. Frankly, we mustn't forget the enormous human cost of problem gambling. Indeed, as the member for Goldstein noted when introducing a similar bill last month, the estimated social cost of gambling in 2017 was $7 billion.

Of course, such figures are well known—we've heard them time and time again—but it seems the government needs a reminder of the real impact that gambling has. For instance, take Gavin Fineff, the former financial adviser who gambled and lost $8 million of his clients' money, with the willing assistance of three of Australia's biggest online betting agencies. Yes, Gavin understands he did the wrong thing and is now in jail, but he is not the only one to blame, because the predatory practices of Tabcorp, Ladbrokes and BetEasy facilitated and encouraged Gavin's gambling addiction. They offered him VIP status, bonus bets and tickets to sporting events. But, unconscionably, none of these companies once asked where the money was coming from. Indeed, they even facilitated accounts under a false name to allow him to continue gambling.

That this madness continues and that almost all the political parties remain beholden to gambling companies really does beggar belief, but I suppose it's not difficult to understand why when you consider the report by the Centre for Public Integrity, which shows $24 million in donations from the gambling industry to the major parties over the past two decades. It's no wonder the current Minister for Communications' receiving of big gifts from Sportsbet before the last election hardly caused a ripple.

I commend the member for Mayo for this bill, as well as the member for Goldstein, who introduced a similar bill last month, and I'm delighted to second it. At the same time, I ask the government: what further information do you need? We know what the problem is. We know the harm it causes. We know Australians are sick to death of gambling advertising and want it banned, so, for God's sake, let's just do it. Let's get behind this bill, which would do just this.

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The time allocated for this debate has expired. The debate is adjourned. The resumption of the debate will be made an order of the day for the next sitting.