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5/2023

Carol Bennett
Chief Executive Officer
Message from the CEO
Our joint symposium Tackling Gambling Harm in Australia, co-hosted with the Public Health Association of Australia, was held on Monday 1 May in Adelaide. It was a pre-preventive health conference event and provided an excellent opportunity to partner with the health sector to bring together more than 100 people to hear from Australia’s leading experts in gambling harm. The symposium provided a focus on finding solutions to address the harm that can and does arise from gambling. The need for gambling harm to be a recognised public health issue underpinned by a national strategy and real investment in prevention, treatment, support and research was a key outcome.
Important and overdue reform including a ban on gambling advertising was given high priority by participants at the symposium. Its high on the Alliance’s list of priorities too. A huge thank you to those who are making a regular donation of $10 a month to support our End Gambling Ads Campaign! As the Alliance does not receive state or federal government funding, this support is invaluable in enabling us to do our policy and advocacy work.
Tackling gambling harm in Australia symposium Monday 1 May 2023.
Left to right: Dini Soulio, Liquor & Gambling Commissioner South Australia, Carol Bennett and Peta Murphy MP, Chair of Inquiry into online gambling and its impacts on those experiencing gambling harm.


ACT MLA Marisa Paterson MLA launched ‘Keep Molonglo Pokie-Free’' in the Canberra community on Tuesday 2 May 2023 - an Australian first! The Alliance for Gambling Reform welcomes Marisa's leadership in making our new local suburbs pokies free.
Other issues highlighted included the urgent need for the national self-exclusion scheme, Betstop! to be implemented as well as the speedy introduction of the ban on credit for online gambling. We were delighted to see Minister Rishworth’s announcement that legislation for this to occur will be introduced in the spring sitting of parliament. It’s a great step forward in gambling harm reduction.
And on the poker machine front, how ironic that the losses continue to grow in NSW even as the need for a cashless gambling card were playing out as a high priority election issue. In the last 6 months, the state saw losses of $4.2b rolling off the back of $8b in losses in 2022. And Victoria posted losses for the one month of March of more than $247 million! Where do people think this money is coming from?
Also featured in this newsletter is a short update on casino reform – and another eye watering fine of $30m for Crown…
We partnered with the peak body for the alcohol and other drug sector in a webinar attended by 200 people on the importance of implementing formal standards for AOD and gambling treatment services. What stands out is that while the AOD sector are struggling to maintain standards outlined in their national quality framework, the gambling services sector is yet to have a framework (of any kind!).
And the ACT is leading on a new proposal by MLA Marisa Paterson for a poker machine free community in a new and developing region of Canberra- Molonglo Valley. Marisa is calling on Canberrans to pledge their support for a safer community and we strongly support her!
Latest news on our work with councils and our voices also in this newsletter.
Thank you again for your support of our work and I hope you enjoy reading this edition!
Join us to end gambling harm by making a regular donation of just $10 a month to support our End Gambling Ads Campaign
Tackling Gambling Harm
in Australia symposium

Experts including EM Professor Mike Daube, Dini Soulio, Carol Bennett and Kate Seselja make recommendations in the closing session at the Tackling gambling harm in Australia symposium
On Monday 1 May, The Alliance partnered with the Public Health Association of Australia (PHAA) for the symposium “Social justice meets public health: tackling gambling harm in Australia”.
This was a pre-conference event of the PHAA Preventative Health Conference and held at the Adelaide Convention Centre as well as virtually.

Rose O'Leary, Carol Bennett from the Alliance met with Connie Bonaros MLC
The event was well-attended by Federal politicians, researchers, lived experience advocates, local government representatives, community health organisations and more which truly highlighted how much interest in the issue is growing and how it is beginning to be recognised as a crucial public health issue.
The key takeaways from the conference were:
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Lived experience needs to be front and centre when it comes to legislative changes to ensure any changes will have the greatest impact on reducing harm
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Acceptance that, like other harmful products, gambling should be properly regulated
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The need for a national health response to gambling harm (including prevention, treatment and research) crucial with a call for the Federal Government to create a unit within the Department of Health and Aged Care to address gambling harm and to establish a new, properly resourced national regulator and ombudsman
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The need for gambling industry donations and lobby interests to be curbed to protect the integrity of governments to act in the public interest
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Now is the time to implement a mandatory pre-commitment scheme for both online gambling services and poker machines with binding and practical default limits which can only be increased with proof of income.
The symposium generated significant media interest as the first national forum on gambling harm. Following the symposium, Alliance for Gambling Reform CEO Carol Bennett and Policy and Advocacy Lead Rose O’Leary met with Connie Bonaros MLC to discuss local gambling harm issues in South Australia.
See our communique here
See our media release here
Federal Government to ban online gambling with credit


The Hon Amanda Rishworth MP Minister for Social Services, Member for Kingston
The Hon Michelle Rowland MP Minister for Communications, Member for Greenway
It is most encouraging to see leadership at a Federal level regarding practical measures to reduce and prevent gambling harm including the recent announcement of a ban on credit for online gambling
Read The Hon Amanda Rishworth MP Minister for Social Services, Member for Kingston and The Hon Michelle Rowland MP Minister for Communications, Member for Greenway media release here.
The Alliance media release is here.
You can also read our policy on prohibiting the use of credit for gambling via our website
Poker Machine
Losses
The poker machine losses for New South Wales for the period of June 2022 to December 2022 were published on Anzac Day eve. Not only was this a very unfortunate time to publish such crucial data, but it was also some of the most staggering poker machine losses we have ever seen in Australia’s history.
Over $4.2 billion was lost to gambling over a six month period, which has led to over $8 billion of losses in 2022 alone. It highlights the critical need for reforms to support those at risk of, or impacted by, gambling harm. We simply cannot continue with such high losses which have continued to climb not only in NSW but the entire country both on poker machines and via online gambling.
The Alliance urges NSW supporters to get in touch with their state MP and stress the importance of gambling reforms such as cashless gambling with mandatory pre-commitment which will have a lasting and significant impact on reducing harm and therefore reducing these losses! Click here to find your local MPs details.
Last Friday the poker machine losses for Victoria were also published for March. Over $247 million was in one month alone! To read more about your local losses click here.
Keep Molonglo Pokies Free


Carol Bennett speaks at the Keep Molongo Pokie-free Launch in the ACT.
On 2 May, ACT MLA Marisa Paterson launched a proposal for a new poker machine free community in a new region being developed in Canberra- Molonglo Valley.
A campaign will run for a month asking residents to pledge their support for a poker machine free community and have conversations around what they would want from a local, pokies-free, community club!
It’s a brilliant initiative that we hope will set a precedent for developing safer communities around Australia. You can read our media release here, Marisa’s media release here.
Quality
and accreditation
in the AOD and gambling sectors
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On Wednesday 26 April, the Alliance and the Australian Alcohol and Other Drugs Council, the peak body for the alcohol and other drug (AOD) sector, co-hosted a workshop focusing on the need for Quality and Accreditation in the AOD and gambling sectors.
Around 200 people from the AOD and gambling services sectors attended the online event to hear about the importance of implementing formal standards for services. The event comes in the wake of several high-profile cases across the country where clients were harmed by under-regulated services.
Speakers at the online event included: Rebecca Lang, CEO, Queensland Network of Alcohol and Other Drug Agencies (QNADA); Jill Rundle, CEO, Western Australian Network of Alcohol and other Drug Agencies (WANADA); Rob Stirling, CEO, Network of Alcohol and other Drugs Agencies (NADA); and Carol Bennett, CEO, The Alliance.
While the AOD sector has a poorly implemented national quality framework, there is no national framework of any kind in the gambling sector.
In summary, not only do we need a national strategic approach to gambling harm treatment, but it needs to be integrated into the broader public health system, especially given the potential for comorbidities. It also should be properly evaluated, including providing a lived experience perspective on how accessible and effective the current treatment options are for different groups of gamblers, their families, workplaces and communities.
Our 3 recommendations are:
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National Strategy to reduce gambling harm including access to appropriate treatment services, ongoing regular evaluation and improvement of the services available to people seeking help for gambling issues.
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Provide all medical and health professionals (including helpline operators) with training in gambling harm reduction and an up to date set of guidelines and referral options.
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Provide those seeking help to readily access independent and quality information about gambling harm and services via a national services directory..
Read more here.

Update on casino reform
Casinos continue to be in the spotlight following the many investigations into their businesses. We are yet to know the outcome of the Adelaide SkyCity inquiry due to a coinciding inquiry by AUSTRAC needing to be finalised before the inquiry findings are published and recommendations implemented.
The Alliance continues to meet with and receive updates from the Office of the Special Manager who are overseeing Crown Melbourne. We look forward to seeing their final recommendations to the Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission at the end of this year.
Crown Casino were fined $30 million last week for its illegal bank cheque processes which allowed people to bank cheques made out to themselves and not the casino. This increased risk of money laundering and extends credit to those who gamble which is illegal on land-based gambling (like poker machines) in Australia due to heighted risk of harm. The Alliance is glad to see the VGCCC take appropriate action! Read more here.
And finally, Star has been in the news recently due to a financial crisis hitting their casinos following the disciplinary action taken against them following various inquiries. You can read more here.
Councils and Supporter Organisations Update

The Victorian Local Government Association’s working group on gambling met in April and had a presentation from researchers from Curtin University and Deakin University on a Public Health Approach to Gambling. Council officers and Councillors had many questions on how this research could apply to their approach to preventing harm from gambling at a local government level.
The Alliance has been working with a number of councils who are updating their gambling harm prevention policies and some who are creating a policy for the first time. If your council is considering adopting a gambling policy this year, please get in touch with our Councils and Supporters Coordinator, Bec Paterson, as she would love to provide you with advice on current best practices for council policies.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics will release the SEIFA data from the 2021 Census at the end of April, which will give councils the opportunity to consider how the demographics of their local area have changed since 2016. The Alliance suggests it would be good for councils to compare the two data sets and understand how this could impact future applications for venues or additional machines, as well as regional caps and municipal limits set by the Minister.
Please get in touch with Bec if you'd like to discuss this further.
Voices
Update

Paul Fung, Anna Bardsley, Scott Wilson, and Kate Seselja presented on the lived experience of gambling harm at the Tackling Gambling Harm in Australia symposium.
The incredible momentum of the last month has seen new people with lived experience of gambling harm emerge to join the chorus of Voices demanding gambling reform. Every single news outlet has written and produced countless important pieces that bring along the community education around gambling harm and our voices give vital insights in those stories.
We have also engaged with members of parliament to help bring about important legislative change.
We were devastated to hear that the Federal Government has failed to deliver Betstop! – the national self-exclusion register to consumers that are profoundly unprotected from this predatory industry.
We will continue our efforts moving forward as we now have a very solid platform to maintain the focus and intensity needed to create meaningful change.

Kate Seselja, speaks at the Keep Molongo Pokie-free Launch in the ACT on 2 Tuesday 2023
Media Releases
2 May 2023
2 May
Urgent national action critical to combat gambling harm
1 May
Only total ban on gambling advertising will protect our children
28 April 2023
26 April 2023
16 April 2023
10 April 2023
5 April 2023
Opinion Pieces

Strong links between gambling and suicide need to be considered in reform
The Canberra Times
Carol Bennett
20 Sept 2023
New research undertaken by Federation University in collaboration with the Coroners Court of Victoria, examined the Victorian Suicide Register which revealed at least 184 suicides were directly related to gambling. There were another 17 gambling-attributed suicides by "affected others" such as family members.

The ACT needs to go all in on cashless gambling now
The Canberra Times
Rev Tim Costello
31 Aug 2023
The ACT should be among the first jurisdictions in Australia to introduce significant gambling reform in the shape of a mandatory cashless gambling card.
The move would be groundbreaking, representing a major blow to a predatory gambling industry that costs Australians more than $27 billion in losses every year - more per capita than any other country on the planet.
In The News

Strong links between gambling and suicide need to be considered in reform
The Canberra Times
20 September 2023
New research undertaken by Federation University in collaboration with the Coroners Court of Victoria, examined the Victorian Suicide Register which revealed at least 184 suicides were directly related to gambling. There were another 17 gambling-attributed suicides by "affected others" such as family members.

Advocates welcome gambling credit ban, but question lotto exemption
The New Daily
13 September 2023
Carol Bennett, CEO of the Alliance for Gambling Reform, told The New Daily that Australians are the biggest online gamblers in the world.
“This is great legislation in the sense it addresses the need for a ban on credit, digital wallets and digital currencies,” she said.
“These are things that mean people are gambling with money they simply don’t have to lose.”

Pokies reforms: Clubs push for review of ‘dated’ self-exclusion programs
The Age
11 September 2023
Alliance for Gambling Reform chief executive Carol Bennett said her organisation would welcome improvements.
She said a mishmash of different jurisdictions and gambling companies running their own programs had led to huge failures.
“There is a mismatch between the technology and some of these very outdated schemes that don’t really do what they were intended to do or have found to be in breach of the very purpose they were set up,” Bennett said.
“It really is an area that is very important to people who are harmed by gambling ... They need to feel confident in the system and, at the moment, it’s hard to say that.”

Online gamble: new self-exclusion tool launched
ABC Listen
21 August 2023
It's taken eight years of campaigning, but a national self-exclusion programme for people gambling too much online is up and running from today.
It's called BetStop and it's supposed to reduce the growing harm associated with online gambling.
But some groups are calling for more to be done.

Carol Bennett on Gold Coast Breakfast
ABC Gold Coast
14 September 2023
Alliance CEO Carol Bennett comments on the legislation to be introduced by the Anthony Albanese Labor Government to Parliament today which include a ban on credit card payments and fines for companies who don’t enforce it. While these reforms are significant, we would like to see them include lotteries ABC Gold Coast

New analysis on link between gambling and suicide
ABC Listen
12 September 2023
New research has shed light on the link between gambling and suicide, after analysis of Coroner's Court cases in Victoria.
Advocates for gambling reform say it supports anecdotal evidence of what they're seeing on the ground, and they're calling for urgent action from state and federal governments.

CEO Carol Bennett on signage laws in NSW
2GB Sydney
5 September 2023
Alliance CEO Carol Bennett joined Bill Woods on 2GB Sydney to discuss the ‘new’ signage laws in NSW. “The Irony is that this was already enabled under the Gambling Act of 2001, so it’s a bit of nonsense to suggest it’s a new measure.”

The ACT needs to go all in on cashless gambling now
The Canberra Times
31 August 2023
The ACT should be among the first jurisdictions in Australia to introduce significant gambling reform in the shape of a mandatory cashless gambling card.
The move would be groundbreaking, representing a major blow to a predatory gambling industry that costs Australians more than $27 billion in losses every year - more per capita than any other country on the planet.

Gambling reform advocate says ads are ‘grooming’ kids as Australian broadcasters lobby against total ban
The Guardian
9 August 2023
Tim Costello has rejected claims from commercial broadcasters that a total ban on gambling ads could threaten their viability, arguing the true “existential crisis” is allowing “grooming of kids by these ads”.
The chief advocate of the alliance for gambling reform has urged Labor and the Coalition to back a total ban on gambling advertisements, acknowledging they are “very worried about taking on channels Seven, Nine and 10” but a bipartisanship push could ensure they “can’t be picked off” in the face of intense lobbying.

Endeavour Group seeks national coordination of 'harm minimisation' tech at gambling venues
itnews
20 July 2023
Endevour Group's call for state governments to implement a nationally coordinated FRT scheme is scary in the absence of appropriate regulation and controls. Alliance CEO Carol Bennett said “I don’t think the state gambling regulators have had their eyes on the ball when it comes to monitoring these matters like how data or facial recognition technology is used."

Gambling signs banned at sport
Star Journal
13 July 2023
Alliance for Gambling Reform chief executive officer, Carol Bennett said this is essential especially when Greater Dandenong is facing a gambling related harm crisis.
“Gambling harms disproportionately impact a community who’re more vulnerable and City of Greater Dandenong has large number of vulnerable groups.
“As a local council, Greater Dandenong council has shown real leadership in supporting the community to resolve some of those harms.”

Online gambling self-exclusion register a ‘one-stop solution’ for those experiencing harm
Sky News
10 July 2023
The Alliance for Gambling Reform’s Kate Seselja says a new self-exclusion register will enable people to be proactive in protecting themselves from online gambling companies.
“We have people who have been impacted for so long now, and they might self-exclude from one company,” Ms Sesejla told Sky News Australia.
“It’s just an exhaustive process.
“This is a one-stop solution, not only for people experiencing gambling harm but for those who want to proactively protect themselves from it.”
SUPPORT
to End Gambling Ads

Can you help support the work of the Alliance for just the cost of 2 coffees a month?
Gambling is a rapidly growing public health issue in Australia, and the constant bombardment of gambling ads during live sports broadcasts, as well as on social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and online gaming platforms, is a cause for concern. These ads are often targeted towards young people and are placed at times and in places where children and teenagers are most likely to see them.
A 13-year-old today doesn't know a world without gambling ads. Online gambling companies were some of the top-spending advertisers in Australia in 2021 with advertising on gambling around $281 million (AdNews, 2022)
I am inviting you to make a regular donation of $10 a month to support our End Gambling Ads Campaign.
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