Senate debates

Tuesday, 13 February 2018

Matters of Public Importance

Gambling

4:48 pm

Photo of Stirling GriffStirling Griff (SA, Nick Xenophon Team) Share this | Hansard source

Predatory gambling has always been a key issue for former Senator Nick Xenophon and the Nick Xenophon Team, and we are proud to have made a number of positive inroads that help protect consumers. We most recently secured gambling ad bans during televised sports matches and bans on credit betting. But that is just the start. Problem gambling is a huge blight on our society and we will never stop pushing for reforms to tackle predatory gambling and the deep harm it causes.

Pokies are, of course, the biggest culprit when it comes to problem gambling. It is an industry that preys on the vulnerable and is a major driver of household debt and family and personal dysfunction. We need to progressively reduce their numbers and we need to urgently remove their addictive features. This is why we have backed the Productivity Commission's recommendations for a $1 maximum bet per spin to try and cap losses at $120 an hour. This is an urgent issue because poker machine players in South Australia alone can currently lose up to $5 per spin every 2.8 seconds or so and can easily lose $1,000 an hour. We also need to get ATMs and EFTPOS machines out of pokie venues.

But this is not the end game. We need to wean state governments off their $5-billion-a-year gambling taxes, and this is where the Commonwealth can very much play a part. We have been pleased to work constructively with this government to achieve some significant reforms, such as a siren-to-siren ban on betting advertising during televised sports matches. We also secured a ban on credit betting, which takes effect from this Saturday.

However, defeating this manipulative industry can feel like a game of Whac-A-Mole. As an example, I'd like to draw senators' attention to a particularly deceptive gambling product known as Lottoland. Despite its misleading name, Lottoland is not a lottery. It's a glorified bookmaker that bets on lottery outcomes. Lottoland is registered in Gibraltar and pays no income tax on the money it earns overseas. It also avoids paying any local taxes—such as, for instance, Tatts pays.

The Interactive Gambling Amendment Bill 2016 made it illegal for overseas gambling companies to offer gambling products to Australians unless they hold a licence issued by a state or territory. Lottoland has secured its licence through the Northern Territory, allowing it to reach most Australians. Thankfully, it has been banned in my home state of South Australia.

What is galling is seeing this gambling product advertised on morning television, when mums and dads are getting their kids ready for school. Many of us would have a talk show blaring in the background in the mornings, particularly to distract one from the noise of young children. But those who tune in to Sunrise will be hit with promotions for Lottoland and a new product, Kenoland, before the weather is even presented. It's gambling in another guise, and we think it deserves to be looked at more closely.

We've banned sporting ads during G-rated programs. We obviously need to take this one step further and ban all gambling advertising while children are watching. When it comes to predatory gambling, NXT will never tire in its efforts to fight against the damage this industry causes to so many people and their families.

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