IN THE NEWS

Senator David Pocock was booted from a sports club for exposing gambling lobbyists buying access to MPs - and it speaks volumes.

“In a week where parliament should have been responding to... outrageous commissions, weak regulation, the pocketing of proceeds of crime and inducements... instead they are kicking out those asking legitimate questions,” said The Alliance’s Chief Advocate Tim Costello.

The damage runs deep. Research shows almost one in three 12-17 year olds are gambling. That's 600,000 kids - enough to fill the MCG six times over.

"Regulators from overseas look at Australian online betting like we look at America with their guns. We laugh at them and think they’re dumb. It was easy for us to just ban guns. It was a no brainer. And it worked. But somehow, banning online sports betting agencies from advertising will throw us back to the sporting dark ages. How dum do they think we all are?"

- The Betoota Advocate

“Kids were seeing more gambling ads on TV and social media than they were seeing points scored in the games.”

Alliance Voices Advocate Mark Kempster is calling out the gambling industry’s relentless targeting of young Australians, especially during major sporting events.

“These companies are trying to indoctrinate young Australians into gambling – making them feel like they need to bet on all sports to enjoy it.”

This is a public health crisis – and the government is still stalling on reform.

Kym Cavigan’s entire life savings - more than $800,000 - were stolen and lost to Sportsbet. Her accountant placed up to 80 bets a day, yet the platform never intervened.

“They just kept luring him,” Kym said. “Sportsbet never stopped him.”

Now she’s suing the gambling giant - with help from the very man who deceived her, and who was himself consumed by gambling harm.

This is what unchecked gambling harm looks like - and it’s happening across the country.

A man experiencing severe gambling harm lost $4.5 million through 52 betting companies – money taken from clients who trusted him. The families affected have received nothing back, while the companies that enabled the harm keep every cent.

These companies used inducements, VIP schemes and constant pressure to fuel the harm – knowing full well the money wasn’t his.

Families are left devastated. Their savings are gone. And still, no accountability. This is systemic failure. Gambling harm is real. The industry must be stopped.

New data reveals that around three million Australians are engaged in some form of harmful gambling, which is linked to financial stress, family violence and poor mental health.

The Australian Gambling Research Centre survey of 3,881 adults found that young people, aged 18 to 24, were nearly twice as likely to be at high risk of harm, compared to other age groups.

Alliance Chief Advocate Tim Costello said: "Australia has really profoundly failed social policy when it comes to gambling."

The Victorian government’s carded play pokie trial is raising more questions than answers. Despite promises of a three-month test, The Alliance has withdrawn its support due to unclear timelines and the failure to include mandatory pre-commitment - a proven way to prevent gambling harm.

As Alliance spokesperson Rebecca Paterson told the Eastern Melburnian: “It’s hard to say you’re trialling something for a three-month period, but the technology that you’re trialling is only in place for two months.”

Pokie trials without mandatory pre-commitment risk being little more than window dressing.

A gambling company snuck a CGI goat into the EJ Whitten Legends Game broadcast - a charity match meant to raise money for prostate cancer - in a covert marketing stunt. Crikey reports this campaign will scale up significantly during the AFL finals. One company has been running goat-themed ad campaigns, including one on social media stating: “The GOAT [Greatest of all time] doesn’t second guess himself because he doesn’t guess.”

But while gambling ads try to sell the myth of being the GOAT, the truth is different. Fans are being lured into losses while gambling companies cash in.

New national data confirms what many already know - gambling is out of control. Australians are losing over $32 billion every year - the highest per capita losses on the planet. In Queensland alone, more than 70% of adults gambled last year, the highest rate in the country.

Alliance Voices Advocate Mark Kempster says the answer is clear:
“We need to remove gambling advertising in all forms across Australia.”

This is a public health crisis, and it’s time for the government to act.

Both the AFL and NRL keep taking money from harmful sponsors.

Alliance CEO Martin Thomas warns: “Research shows that where there is gambling in a family there is up to a 30 per cent greater risk of family violence. Gambling and alcohol are too often a dangerous cocktail that leads to increases in partner and other violence – particularly at times when there are major sporting events such as the football grand finals.”

It’s time for our biggest sporting codes to cut ties with gambling and alcohol advertising and put community safety first.

Former AFL champ joins call to make the 2026 Grand Final gambling ad-free

Former Bulldog’s Premiership player, Tom Boyd, has joined a major campaign calling on the AFL to make next year’s AFL Grand Final a gambling advertising free zone.

The Alliance for Gambling Reform (AGR) and GetUp have today launched a campaign and petition urging the AFL to “kick gambling ads out of footy” — demanding that the biggest day in Australian sport be safe for kids and families.

As part of the campaign a mobile billboard will circle the MCG and Melbourne CBD throughout the Grand Final weekend festival, carrying the message: Kick gambling out of football”.

The release of the Murphy report should have been a turning point - instead, it’s been drowned in political drama and stalled progress. A new piece by Punters Politics lays bare how gambling industry donations are muddying the waters and undermining real reform. The influence of gambling money in politics is keeping harmful poker machines in our communities and silencing those calling for change.

Crossbench MPs are calling out the gambling lobby’s presence in federal parliament’s sports club, accusing them of buying access to MPs under the guise of social sport.

Kate Chaney MP slammed the move, saying it’s “another subtle way lobbyists are making politicians believe gambling is indispensable to sport.”

David Pocock also condemned the gambling industry’s attempt to link itself to suicide prevention, calling it “pretty shameless.”

The Alliance stands with calls to cut ties with gambling lobbyists in Parliament. It’s time to put people’s wellbeing ahead of industry profits.

The Commonwealth Bank approved over $13,000 in loans to a man spending more than half his income on gambling. Despite clear warning signs, CBA claimed its $10,000 gambling threshold meant the loans were “within policy.”

Alliance CEO Martin Thomas said: “It seems extraordinary that a bank has such a limited approach to assessing people in terms of gambling harm.”

This case shows how rigid policies fail real people. Banks must be held accountable for fuelling gambling harm, not excused by flawed thresholds.

Australians lose $32 billion a year to gambling—the highest per capita in the world. “The world looks at us and asks, how did we allow this?” said The Alliance’s Chief Advocate, Tim Costello. From 900 gambling ads daily to influencers glamorising pokies, kids are being caught in the crossfire. “Eighty per cent of ten-year-olds now know the odds on AFL and NRL games.” It's time for national reform. “We need to treat gambling as a health issue, not a sports issue.”

Include a Charity Week is all about asking an awkward question to friends, family, colleagues - anyone who will listen. So here goes...

Do you plan to include a charity in your Will?

Gifts in Wills help charities all over the world. At the Alliance for Gambling Reform, the gifts we’ve received through Wills have helped us continue our campaign for gambling reform over the past 10 years.

But we realise that writing a Will can be expensive. So, we’ve partnered with Gathered Here, Australia’s most trusted online will platform, to bring you access to 100% free online Wills with unlimited free updates for life!

“The NSW Government has helped itself to approximately $2.9 billion (25 per cent) of the top 25 clubs’ pokies profits over 10 years, in stark contrast, and here’s the kicker, the clubs’ community-based donations equal $0.2 billion (2.2 per cent).” More with Michael West media.

The Alliance has pulled its support for the Allan government’s cashless pokies trial, slamming it as a failure to deliver on promises to reduce gambling harm. The trial, set to launch in 43 venues, ditches mandatory loss limits—a key safeguard for people at risk.

“It is a complete waste of time to have a trial where the pre-commitment feature that could cap your losses is not mandatory,” said Chief Advocate Tim Costello. “Instead, it is opt-in – like having opt-in brakes on a car. We fear that the true motivation of this trial is to kick it into the long grass.”

Sportsbet secretly programmed an AI chatbot to “subtly” promote itself—using the voice of AFL personality Kane Cornes. Dubbed “CornesGPT,” the bot mimicked Cornes’ persona while quietly boosting Sportsbet with “casual approval or admiration.”

Despite widespread promotion, SEN deleted all related content without explanation. Professor Samantha Thomas warns: “This is a high-tech industry… and the problem we have is that government regulation has not kept up with the technology.”

Gambling companies are evolving—so must our protections.

Support real reform. Donate now to The Alliance.

AustralianSuper has dropped over $26 million in shares from poker machine giant Aristocrat from its ‘socially aware’ fund. The Alliance’s CEO Martin Thomas called the move “highly significant”, stating: “the recognition from our largest superannuation fund that gambling stocks are not an appropriate investment in an ethically minded fund is highly significant.”

This is a clear message: gambling harm has no place in ethical investing. But why are default funds still investing billions in poker machines?

Foxtel aired a gambling ad during an AFL match without the required harm warning—and claimed it wasn’t really “promotional.” ACMA disagreed, but all Foxtel got was a press release and training.

Martin Thomas, CEO of the Alliance for Gambling Reform, says ACMA must do better at being a trusted regulator:

“It is alarming. The prime purpose of ACMA is to enforce the code and protect the public. By sharing media releases it, at the very least, has an appearance of a cosy relationship with the industry, and appearances are just as important as reality.”

Victorians have lost a staggering $3.145 billion on poker machines in 2024/25, fuelled by a massive $115 million jump in losses in just 12 months.

The accelerated annual loss represents the largest year on year jump in losses in Victoria’s history – outside of those figures affected by the COVID shutdown.

And this spike in losses comes in a year where changed venue operating hours should have led to a fall in losses. New uniform venue closing hours from 4am-10am each day were in effect for all but two months of the 2024/25 financial year.

The Alliance’s Rebecca Paterson has welcomed the upcoming pokies card trial in Greater Dandenong, calling it a vital step in tackling gambling harm.

“This is something we’ve been advocating for long time so we’re very excited that at least a trial is happening with intention that this will become permanent,” she said.

The trial will require players to use a card to set spending limits—an evidence-backed method Paterson says helps reduce harm to “individuals’ families and communities.”

While ClubsNSW handed out trophies for “community service,” the real winners are poker machine profits. Mounties, Wests Leagues, Revesby Workers, and more were all celebrated—despite skyrocketing gambling losses in their LGAs. One club’s net profit per machine hit $35,868.

In reality, just 3.5% of profits are spent on the community, while billions are drained from people suffering gambling harm. “Winners” of awards in “mental wellbeing” and “social inclusion” are also among the state’s top poker machine profiteers.

Help us expose this hypocrisy and end gambling harm.

The federal government is being pushed to release a secret 32-page draft response to the Murphy report, which unanimously recommended phasing out gambling ads. Despite broad political support, Labor has delayed action for over two years. “One of the biggest failures of the last parliament and a wrong I hope we can right this time,” said Senator David Pocock. Each delay means more people are harmed by constant gambling advertising—especially on TV, social media, and through inducements. The time for transparency and reform is now.

Doctors are calling for urgent action against influencers glamorising gambling on social media. The Australian Medical Association warns this “shocking” trend targets young people and fuels gambling harm. Dr Danielle McMullen says, “They are clearly targeted at young people and seek to glamorise what is a dangerous habit and not one we would encourage people to take part in.” Meanwhile, the cost of gambling harm in Victoria has doubled to $14 billion. Our laws are failing to keep up.

NSW’s top gaming regulator has called out the pokies industry in explosive terms, stating it has “no social licence to rape and pillage the community.” ILGA chair Caroline Lamb’s comments, made during a legal breakfast, triggered backlash from the Gaming Minister—but she’s not backing down. Her warning highlights how harmful poker machine operations—especially late-night hours—can be to communities.

Independent Senator David Pocock has been kicked out of a parliamentary sports club, after he criticised its decision to accept sponsorship from an online gambling group.

The Australian Parliament Sports Club is meant to provide a chance for politicians, staffers, public servants and journalists to spend time together socially.

But it also sells corporate memberships, offering the opportunity to rub shoulders with decision-makers.

Australia’s gambling harm crisis is growing - but governments are failing to act. Research shows at least 4.2% of Victorian suicides were gambling-related, yet critical reforms are still being ignored.

It’s been over two years since a federal committee made 31 urgent recommendations on online gambling harm. No action.

As MP Andrew Wilkie told Four Corners: “Government inaction starts to look a lot like a protection racket for the gambling industry.”

Lives are being lost while the industry profits.

It’s time for national reform - with no more political excuses.

The Greens and Australian Christian Lobby have joined forces to back a new bill banning poker machines between 2am and 10am - a rare show of unity fuelled by deep concern over gambling harm.

The Alliance's Chief Advocate Tim Costello praised the move:
“Who would have thought that in such a polarised society, the pain of pokies could have brought such inimical foes on to a unity ticket?”

It's time for action, not excuses. Every day delayed means more lives harmed by poker machines.

A damning Four Corners investigation has exposed serious concerns about Australia’s de facto online gambling regulator, the Northern Territory Racing and Wagering Commission. With no full-time staff and zero licence cancellations on record, critics say it’s unfit to tackle an industry turning over $50 billion a year.

Independent MP Andrew Wilkie didn’t hold back: "I'd liken the regulator up there to one of those so-called chocolate teapots. It's useless."

Australians are losing more to gambling than any other country - it’s time for real national oversight.

Sportsbet bombarded a Victorian customer with texts offering a “guaranteed share of $1m in bonus bets”—but only if he copied a same-game multi bet on grand final day.

This came weeks after similar inducements, including a 600% deposit match, despite bipartisan calls two years ago to ban all online gambling inducements “without delay.”

“That’s not sport, that’s grooming the next generation of punters,” said The Alliance’s CEO Martin Thomas.

Research shows inducements fuel risk-taking and gambling harm. Yet the government still hasn’t acted.

The Alliance is campaigning for a full ban on gambling ads before next year’s finals.

Over Grand Final weekend, The Alliance took to Melbourne’s streets with a bold message: Kick gambling ads out of footy.

Our truck rolled loud and proud, calling out the flood of gambling ads targeting our kids during the game they love. Thousands saw it - and the message was clear: footy should be family-friendly, not gambling-sponsored.

Thanks to everyone who snapped a pic and showed their support!

📣 Let’s keep the pressure on. Add your voice to protect kids from gambling harm - sign the petition today.

Can you even picture it? They're are all-pervasive - on jerseys, on the TV between tackles and even on the field itself. The Alliance wants 2026 to be the first year where you can watch the finals without the gambling ads. Listen in as Alliance Voices Advocate Dylan shares his lived experience, and Alliance CEO Martin Thomas discusses the changes we want to see on ABC Radio National.

📣 Let’s keep the pressure on. Add your voice to protect kids from gambling harm - sign the petition today.

The AFL Grand Final should be a celebration of footy, not a billboard for the gambling industry. But right now, our screens are flooded with betting odds, even more than goals. Kids are growing up thinking gambling is just part of the game.

It doesn’t have to be this way.

We’re calling on the AFL to show leadership and commit to making the 2026 Grand Final completely free of gambling ads, setting a new national standard for protecting our kids, our families, and the integrity of our sport.

Sign our petition here.

From 2026, SBS On Demand will let you permanently opt out of gambling ads. After a successful trial that slashed ad complaints by 45%, the feature will become a core part of the platform.

"Audiences have always had complete control over what they watch... but the opt-out gives them further benefit by providing greater control over the ads they see as well," said SBS Acting Managing Director Jane Palfreyman.

This is a powerful example of taking action action - and a win for people trying to avoid gambling harm.

Children are being exposed to gambling ads long before they understand the risks. Research shows kids as young as six can recognise gambling brands, jingles, and characters – even though the ads aren’t supposed to target them.

With gambling ads flooding footy finals, it’s no wonder fans feel sidelined while the AFL and NRL chase gambling dollars.

We’re fighting back with our campaign to kick gambling out of football – and we need your help.

Public Broadcaster SBS has become the first broadcaster globally to allow viewers of its streaming service to opt out of certain advertising categories – including gambling ads.

The broadcaster says the move is part of its ESG (Environmental & Social Governance) leadership which also includes its commitment to Australia’s first zero emissions media platform and gender equity with the lowest pay gap in sector.

As the Albanese Government prepares to act on gambling advertising, the TV lobby group Free TV is turning up the pressure. They’re bringing out big names - Scotty Cam, Ally Langdon, and others- to lobby behind closed doors in Canberra.

The message? Keep the ads. Keep the profits.

But Australians are fed up. Gambling ads are everywhere - during sport, on streaming services, even in family viewing hours. The cost? Rising gambling harm, especially among young people.

While Free TV fights for revenue, The Alliance is fighting for communities. We need strong, clear rules that put public health before profit.

Australian Test cricket star Usman Khawaja has urged Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to stop blocking gambling reform, batting away suggestions banning betting ads during sports could put athletes out of a job.

Khawaja says sport does not need gambling money and wants all betting ads removed. The landmark Peta Murphy inquiry called for exactly that — a ban on gambling advertising and inducements.

Australian cricketer Usman Khawaja has slammed the government for being “100% too slow” to ban gambling ads, saying “we are normalising gambling for the younger generation.”

Khawaja joined doctors, MPs and experts at Parliament House, warning that linking gambling with sport sets “a very, very dangerous precedent.”

The Albanese government continues to delay responding to a major inquiry calling for a ban. Meanwhile, children are exposed daily.

It's time to put kids before industry profits.

A new report by Transparency International Australia reveals the Commonwealth ranks near last for lobbying transparency. At least eight former federal ministers, advisers, and one state premier have taken up roles promoting gambling. “Former federal ministers can start lobbying straight out of office with impunity,” the report warns. With no independent watchdog and lax rules, the revolving door keeps spinning—putting gambling profits ahead of public interest.

Coburg RSL shows a better way—thriving without pokies by embracing its community. But across Victoria, many RSLs still rely on gambling revenue, risking both their survival and the wellbeing of veterans.

Alliance CEO Martin Thomas says: “With their new president, we would be calling on the RSL to start that change to remove pokies machines from their venues, or at the very least to be at the vanguard of a carded play system that we know from all the evidence greatly reduces the harm that happens.”

For the first time, South Australians lost over $1 billion in a single year to poker machines. The Alliance’s CEO Martin Thomas warns gambling losses are "spiralling out of control", with Australians losing $32 billion annually.

He said: "People go without food, people quite often can't pay their rent and it has dire consequences for families."

This is gambling harm on an industrial scale – and it’s tearing apart communities. It’s time for urgent reform.

Online gambling in Europe surged to 38.6 million users in 2024—a 19% increase in just one year. Alongside this, gambling harm is rising sharply among young people.

Nearly 1 in 4 students aged 15–16 reported gambling in the past year. Online gambling among girls has tripled since 2019, and the number of students showing harmful gambling behaviours has nearly doubled to 8.5%.

Experts warn: "environmental and contextual factors play a more significant role in initiating gambling behaviour..."

After being bombarded with bonus bets, texts and calls—even on the same day Tabcorp flagged her as a problem gambler—Jenny is now buried in $900,000 of debt. “They tend to sort of groom you like a scammer... it definitely is,” she said. Despite opting out of marketing, Tabcorp labelled her a VIP and pushed her to keep gambling. Regulators fined the company $4.6M. Now Jenny is launching a landmark lawsuit: “I am hoping for change. This is the only way to stop these companies.”

After pulling its same-game multi ads from TV, Sportsbet has now flooded the AFL website with “bet now” promotions — a move that shows self-regulation is broken.

The Alliance for Gambling Reform’s chief executive, Martin Thomas, accused Sportsbet of “virtue signalling” by removing its ads from television and then “resorting back to type” by splashing them on the AFL’s website.

For Mark Kempster, the 2020 AFL Grand Final was his turning point. “It was my rock bottom… I’d gone from a young bloke who loved sport, loved life, to someone who hated himself. And I still couldn’t stop.” He hasn’t placed a single bet since that night.

Now five years free from gambling, Mark – an Alliance Voices Advocate – dedicates his time to raising awareness and supporting others. He shares his story in schools, community events and media interviews, determined to reach young men before gambling takes hold. He also mentors dozens who have reached out after hearing his journey, offering hope and guidance through their own battles.

Alliance CEO Martin Thomas warns: “What we finding is there is a massive surge in sports betting, using your phone. All the advertising is trying to make it part of your peer group and socially acceptable. I think that’s probably driving the growth.”

Reflecting on his own experience, Mark says: “That’s how it gets you. Not all at once. Bit by bit, until you don’t even recognise yourself.”

A gambling company made over half its January profits from just 20 so-called “VIP” customers, according to an ASX statement by Pointsbet. The rival company warned of “meaningful risks associated with a VIP-heavy customer base” and rejected a takeover offer tied to those operations.

Gambling harm is being fuelled by targeting high-risk individuals. The government must act on the Murphy report and ban all gambling ads.

A long-awaited trial to reduce gambling harm is set to launch in Monash, where pokies losses topped $10.8 million in May alone. From September, all gamblers at local venues must use a YourPlay card to set daily time and loss limits, with restrictions on how often those limits can be changed.

Alliance Chief Advocate Tim Costello welcomed the move, saying he was “very relieved” and adding, “We know the technology works.” He criticised NSW’s approach, stating, “It’s a trial of technology we’re doing, not whether punters like it.”

The Alliance’s Rebecca Paterson stressed the urgency of wider implementation: “We don’t have a clear understanding of the overall timeline that the minister’s aiming for.”

Online gambling influencers are drawing in young audiences with live-streams that glamourise poker machines and online slots — platforms like Kick and Twitch are making gambling harm look like fun. “Young Australians who are active online can be more vulnerable and gambling influencers may be putting people that follow them at real risk of harm,” said the ACMA. The Alliance is calling for an ad ban across all media: “[It] would prevent anyone — underage or not — from being exposed to people intending to influence gambling behaviour using tactics designed to mislead or glamorise gambling.”

Kids as young as 14 were found inside pokies lounges at venues run by Australian Leisure and Hospitality Group (ALH). The magistrate declared: “This will happen again.” ALH, partly owned by billionaire families, admitted guilt but refused a good behaviour bond — fearing they’d breach it. Despite repeated offences, no ALH venue has ever lost its pokies licence. This isn’t just oversight. It’s a broken system that enables gambling harm.

"Australians are assailed by 1 million gambling ads a year." That’s grooming kids to gamble—and it’s why 600,000 children gambled $18 million last year. Yet the government still hasn’t acted on the Murphy Report’s bold reforms, two years on. But hope is rising. As Tim Costello writes, “There is a strong case to start moving towards a national strategy that treats gambling as a health issue.” The public is ready: 76% want all gambling ads banned. Let’s demand action before more harm is done.

While Griffith loses millions to pokies each year, Rankins Springs’ Conapaira Hotel stands proud — no poker machines, just real community. “The negative impact pokies have on rural towns is undeniable,” said Alliance CEO Martin Thomas. The more #PokiesFreePubs that we have the closer we are to future with less gambling harm.

Revelations that Independent Senator David Pocock has been kicked out of a politician’s sports club that is funded by the gambling industry underscores the iron grip this predatory industry has on our leaders.

Senator Pocock recently brought to light the fact that lobbyists were buying access to parliamentarians by purchasing $2500 sponsorships of the Parliamentary Sports Club.

The club’s sponsors include the peak body for gambling companies like SportsBet, Responsible Wagering Australia, whose CEO is a regular participant in matches with parliamentarians.

“I was exposed to [gambling] at quite a young age... it just did something to me when I placed that bet – it gave me what I needed.”

Alliance Voices for Gambling Reform Advocate Ed began gambling at just eight years old. What started with horse racing in his family grew into a hidden struggle that drove him to steal $1.8 million and landed him in prison. [Jump to 7:33].

Now, with betting apps always within reach, gambling is easier to hide than ever – even from parents.

“I think if someone's drunk through alcohol or someone's affected by drugs, it's... visible, whereas I could be walking down the street having lost a house on a betting app and no one would know.”

Gambling harm can be hard to spot at first, but its impact is devastating. We must expose the tactics that target kids and fight for real reform.

This week’s Four Corners episode Losing Streak exposes the shocking failures in Australia’s regulation of online gambling. Financial advisers, lured by perks, gambled away clients' savings - while gambling companies kept the money and regulators looked the other way.

The so-called regulator? A part-time office in Darwin with no full-time staff.

More than two years after a landmark inquiry called for urgent reform, the federal government still hasn’t acted.

It's time to break the silence on this billion-dollar industry causing massive gambling harm.

Australia loses $31 billion a year to gambling - more per capita than any other country. But who's holding the industry to account? A Four Corners investigation has revealed a broken system: under-resourced regulators, cosy ties with industry, and betting companies pocketing the proceeds of crime. One judge called their practices “the banality of evil.” Meanwhile, people have lost hundreds of thousands without ever placing a bet.

The federal government has ignored 31 urgent reform recommendations for over two years. It's time for action.

Once a showcase of sportsmanship and teamwork, the NRL Grand Final is now more anticipated for one thing: Gambling.

As the season’s final round approaches, our screens—including our kids’, are dominated by betting odds, often taking centre stage over the goals themselves. Worryingly, far too many children are growing up thinking gambling is simply part of the game, with far too many already on that path.

It doesn’t have to be this way. 📣 Let’s keep the pressure on. Add your voice to protect kids from gambling harm - sign the petition today.

“For every person that loses on a poker machine, six other family members are affected,” said Alliance CEO Martin Thomas on ABC Canberra Drive. These machines are everywhere in Australia, creating widespread gambling harm through merciless exploitation.

We need better regulation - starting with mandatory carded play. And we need to bring back what we've lost to pokies, like live music and real community spaces.

Alliance Chief Advocate Tim Costello has warned: “Morally, sociologically and politically, the way forward on pokies reform is blindingly clear, and our failure to take the necessary steps year after year is a blight on our national character … This issue is the equivalent of the United States’ failure to deal with their gun problem.”

For decades, governments have tried to rein in pokies harm, but the industry’s wealth and political muscle keep blocking real reform. Meanwhile, families and communities pay the price. It’s time to put people before pokies profits.

Bec Healey knows firsthand the devastation of gambling harm from poker machines. After years of spiralling losses and mental health struggles, she found help through Lifeline and now bravely speaks out to help others.

Her message is clear: SA’s pokies profits come at a heartbreaking cost.

"To think large amounts of money like that are going through those machines, it's pretty devastating... It's a massive problem… I think more could be put back into helping."

Last year, South Australians lost over $1 billion to pokies, yet just 1% of the $450 million in government revenue went to the Gamblers Rehabilitation Fund.

Bec's courage highlights the urgent need for action. It’s time for a moral shift.

Former NRL star Luke Bateman has spoken out about the devastating toll gambling took on his life, revealing he lost $500,000 in just a few years and was left unable to buy groceries despite earning $400,000 a year.

"My mum was paying my mortgage because I had no money," he told Triple J Hack.

Bateman says gambling harm was rife within the NRL: "I would say half the football team had gambling addictions. Probably not to the same severity that I had, but … that's what we did as a football team."

He described the culture in elite sport as "very corrosive to young men", adding, “Whatever you have to do to win is justified.”

Bateman is now free from gambling harm and calling for government reform.

After years of gambling harm from apps, Mark Kempster hit rock bottom on AFL Grand Final day in 2020 - losing thousands in one sitting. His partner, the mother of his son, urged him to get help.

“That was the catalyst I needed to not lose her and my boy from my life,” he says. Working his way out of addiction took a lot of work, but he has never looked back.

Now an advocate with The Alliance, Mark is calling for urgent reform. We must treat gambling harm as the public health crisis it is.

We ban TikTok to “protect young people,” yet gambling ads run wall-to-wall through every footy final.

Which one’s really doing the harm?

While Usman Khawaja warns that “we are normalising gambling for the younger generation,” Prime Minister Albanese defends Australians’ “right to punt” and delays much-needed gambling ad reform. Khawaja described 16-year-olds who already have gambling accounts and can’t watch sport without placing a bet.

Khawaja added that Labor had “100 per cent” been slow to enact change. Despite Labor’s promise to act on Peta Murphy’s landmark report, the government is now stalling-bowing to pressure from sports executives and media giants profiting from gambling ads.

Pokie machine companies have been offering “free” overseas trips to club bosses - but only if they agree to buy new machines at $30,000 each. Regulators say the trips had “no genuine and specific course of study” - they were just luxury holidays dressed up as training.

These shady deals keep gambling harm going. It’s time for change.

Parliament heard heartbreaking stories of gambling harm — including from one of The Alliance’s Voices for Gambling Reform, whose brother died by suicide after struggling with gambling addiction.

Kate Chaney MP challenged the Prime Minister, asking if delays to the Murphy inquiry response are due to “successful lobbying by powerful interests.”

Anthony Albanese replied: “We have done more as a government than any government in Australia’s history since federation.”

Despite this, key recommendations remain unimplemented. Australians experiencing gambling harm are still being “bombarded by gambling adverts” while waiting for real reform.

Tasmania’s pledge to end greyhound racing subsidies by 2029 is a wake-up call for the rest of Australia. A $50m annual saving could be made if Victoria followed suit – yet millions are still poured into an industry built on “animal cruelty and gambling harm.” As Martin Thomas, CEO of The Alliance, puts it: “It is appalling that we are pouring money into something that is socially destructive.” It’s time to end public funding of cruelty. Support real reform.

We're proud to welcome the City of Casey as a Leadership Council!

Alliance Leadership Councils are key partners in our pursuit of an Australia free from gambling harm - taking action, influencing policy, and standing up to industry power.
Is your council doing the same? If not, they're missing out.

One in four poker machines in NSW clubs could be open to money laundering and terrorism financing, AUSTRAC has warned. The regulator says compliance provider BetSafe has “systemically failed” to meet anti-money laundering obligations.

Mounties Group, one of the state’s biggest club operators, is now facing Federal Court action after $139.9 million in suspicious gambling was linked to just 10 people.

AUSTRAC chief Brendan Thomas put it bluntly: “This isn’t a victimless crime… Every time a criminal puts money through a gaming machine and makes it clean, it means crime is profiting and that money can be reinvested into other criminal activity.”

BlueBet let one man lose $700,000 in four months—despite clear red flags like gambling $40,000 in 11 hours. Instead of stepping in, they gave him VIP status, bonuses, and a personal manager whose commission was tied to his losses. When he ran out of money, they topped up his account with bonus bets. Only after he texted, “I wish I had been pulled up earlier by you guys,” was his account finally closed. The regulator called BlueBet’s behaviour “extremely concerning” but fined them just $53,380—less than 10% of his losses.

https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/9029266/ministers-coy-on-gambling-reform-as-advice-kept-secret/

Ministers still haven't responded to the 2023 Murphy report calling for a total ban on gambling ads and inducements. Now, with key advice kept secret and briefing documents heavily redacted, calls for transparency are mounting.

Senator David Pocock slammed the secrecy: "Pages of redacted information shows how much this government doesn't want to talk about gambling reform or a proper response to the landmark Murphy review."

Max, one of the Alliance’s Voices for Gambling Reform, lived through 25 painful years of gambling harm from poker machines. His story is one of devastation — but also of hope.

At his lowest, Max used pokies to escape depression: “I found life dull and boring in between gambling binges… I used the pokies to self-medicate depression.”

But recovery became possible through connection in local groups: “I laughed until I was crying. I hadn’t laughed like that since I was a teenager, 30 years before.” He credits a 12-step program and mental health support group Grow with giving him his life back. Now more than a decade free from gambling, Max is sharing his story to help others.

Another gambling company has breached critical gambling safeguards by targeting 273 self-excluded Australians with marketing messages. The ACMA found the company also failed to promote the BetStop register in over 2,300 notifications — a clear violation of mandatory rules.

These breaches highlight how gambling companies are failing to protect those who have taken steps to reduce harm.

The Alliance is calling for stronger protections to ensure gambling companies cannot ignore the rules with impunity.

It’s been over two years since Peta Murphy's report, known as the ‘You win some, you lose more’ report was tabled—yet still no government response. A draft has existed for over 7 months, but the public is being denied access. Why the silence on gambling harm?

As Rex Patrick says: “Addressing the harm that gambling is doing to the community just doesn’t seem to be a priority for the Albanese government.”

We can’t afford more delays. People’s lives are at stake.

The new Rugby League 26 game has stripped all gambling and alcohol ads from player jerseys, with a focus on protecting young players under 18.

“We believe that gaming is being used to introduce kids to gambling... What is sad, is that it is working,” said Martin Thomas, CEO of The Alliance.

With 600,000 kids aged 12–17 gambling $18 million last year, it’s time to act. Let’s ban gambling ads in games—for good.

Australians lose nearly $13 billion to poker machines each year—and at least $10 billion of that comes from people gambling beyond safe limits. That’s 84% of losses tied to gambling harm, not so-called ‘responsible’ play.

When most pokies profits are built on harm, it's time regulators stopped pretending this industry is just harmless fun.

A survey of all Tasmanian election candidates has revealed that 51 potential MPs are committed to fight for the introduction of a ‘gold standard’, poker machine cashless card in the next session of parliament.

However, the Alliance’s Chief Advocate, Tim Costello, is alarmed that while the public strongly backs reform the two major parties are retreating with no candidates from either the Liberals or Labor expressing their support.

“This election is a critical opportunity for Tasmania to finally tackle the horrendous damage that gambling is wreaking on this state,” Rev. Costello said.

“After both the major parties previously committed to a gold standard, mandatory, pre-commitment, cashless card, it is alarming to witness the collapse of this support in our poll of candidates due to the bullying of a ruthless gambling industry.”

Rev. Costello said it was critical that Tasmanians put pressure on their local candidates to support nation-leading reform.