Calling Out the Major Parties: Enough is Enough on Gambling Ads! - Aug 2024
Our major parties are political machines focused on winning elections, so when it comes to gambling ads, communities pay the price.
My first Post column, in October 2022, was about our kids being bombarded by ads for online gambling.
I heard horror stories from people in Curtin about the impact of gambling on their teenage sons and the way gambling has become a normalised part of sport.
I advocated for an inquiry, and we reviewed hundreds of submissions and came up with 31 recommendations about regulating the online gambling industry.
A key recommendation was to phase out online gambling ads, like we did with tobacco a generation ago.
The Government is floating a half-baked and complicated combination of partial bans which seem to pander to those who make money from online gambling. The Opposition has indicated it would also support this approach.
This is a classic example of how the major parties fail our communities.
Big media companies earn revenue from gambling ads and can affect political outcomes
Cashed-up gambling companies made $1.7m worth of political donations to the major parties last year
Despite huge public support for a ban, neither major party is willing to take on these powerful industries.
We are facing so many issues that don’t have easy solutions – cost of living, housing, decarbonising our economy, tax reform – so when there is an issue with a simple answer, it's infuriating that our political system prevents action.
That’s why I’m keeping up the pressure on the Government – in Question Time, in the media, and in meetings with Ministers - to make it clear that if the Government (and Opposition) won’t take a stand on this, then there are voices that will hold them to account.
