Gambling ads in Australia: PM says blanket ban is not the solution

Anthony Albanese says a blanket ban is not the ‘bold’ move others claim it is.

Australia.- The pressure on Australia’s prime minister Anthony Albanese to implement a total ban on gambling ads is mounting, but Albanese remains doubtful about the effectiveness of such a measure. In an interview with ABC Radio, the prime minister said a blanket prohibition would not be the “bold” move some claim. He said: “The problem isn’t advertising, the problem is gambling.

“The easy option is just to (ban ads) and not worry about the consequences for sporting codes, junior sport, the media,” he added.

He noted that lotteries and scratchies are the most common forms of gambling, with 64 per cent of Australian adults participating in 2022. This is compared to 38 per cent who bet on horse races and 33 per cent who placed wagers on sports, according to data from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Albanese said, “I haven’t seen a campaign about advertising lotteries – which is a far bigger problem than sports gambling.”

According to the Australian Associated Press (AAP), David Pocock, one of the advocates of a ban on all betting ads, has responded by saying that a ban on ads would prevent the normalisation of gambling for children. He said: “Kevin Rudd had the guts as prime minister to take on Big Tobacco and legislate plain packaging. Anthony Albanese needs to show the same courage here and ban gambling advertising.”

Earlier this month, a report from the Grattan Institute found that Australia still has the highest gambling losses in the world. Entitled A better bet: How Australia should prevent gambling harm, the report finds that the average Australian adult loses AU$1,635 (US$1,099.5) a year. That compares to US$543.65 in the US and US$392.10 in New Zealand.

See also: Video games in Australia: new classifications for gambling-like content