Costello seeks urgent PM meeting after being misrepresented as a gambling ‘prohibitionist’
12 Sept 2024
The Alliance’s Chief Advocate, Tim Costello, has sought an urgent meeting with the Prime Minister after Mr Albanese appeared to wrongly label him a gambling prohibitionist in the national parliament yesterday.
Mr Costello is also urging Mr Albanese to meet face to face with Mark Kempster who has spoken out bravely and powerfully of his experience in losing $100,000s to online gambling.
“I have never been advocating for a ban on gambling, I believe people should have the option to gamble, but we do not need to be bombarded with literally a million plus ads every year imploring us to gamble,” Rev. Costello said.
“If the Prime Minister implements only a partial ban on gambling advertising he is siding with rich bookmakers rather than protecting our children from gambling harm. Mr Albanese should also take the time to meet with people who have been harmed by gambling.”
The CEO of the Alliance, Martin Thomas, said new research shows how successful gambling companies have become at targeting our children. Research from the Australian Gambling Research Centre found that about a third of young adults who gambled in the last year started punting before the age of 18. It also found those who start gambling at a young age experience greater harms from gambling as an adult.
“This is just further proof that gambling companies are coming for our kids. They have used sport to lure our kids into gambling and they have targeted them on social media,” Mr Thomas said.
“Parents are furious at the targeting of their children by gambling advertising and want a full ad ban in broadcast media and online.”
The latest poll by Red Bridget showed that 72% of Australians are in favour of a full gambling ad ban.
The Murphy inquiry, chaired by Labor MP, Peta Murphy, and unanimously supported by inquiry members from both sides of politics, found that the “inescapable torrent” of gambling advertising is normalising online gambling and its links with sport, grooming children and young people to gamble, and encouraging riskier behaviour.
Australians lose over $25 billion each year to gambling, the highest per capita spend in the world.
Gambling harm is a massive public health issue, linked to poor physical and mental health, poverty and homelessness, criminal activity, family violence, and suicide.
Exposure to advertising can normalise gambling participation, lead to early uptake of online gambling and increased risk of harm and can encourage impulse betting and continued and intensified wagering.
Tim Costello and Martin Thomas are available for interview on media@agr.org.au – 07 3180 0630