New report proposes to ban gambling ads in Australia

Added: June 29, 2023

A new inquiry conducted by the Australian Parliament’s social policy committee recommends the banning of all gambling ads in the country.

The report, titled “You win some, you lose more”, covered the gambling industry and its effects on problem gamblers. It was originally initiated just under a year ago in September last year, since which the country’s social policy committee has thoroughly examined the local gambling industry. The committee stated that the evidence it found through the review drove it to choose the aforementioned title as it best reflected the report’s findings.

The inquiry looked into the country’s regulatory framework and assessed its impact on Australians and their communities. The report highlighted that the country is the leader in the world in terms of gambling spend, which is having negative consequences for its people. It further added that the largest part of this is the country’s fragmented regulatory framework and its advertising standards, and highlighted a few recommendations to help reduce the negative effects of the gambling industry.

One of the first recommendations of the report is the development of a national harm prevention strategy, which would help problem gamblers at an early stage and reduce their exposure to various harms. One of the report’s other major recommendations is the prohibition of all gambling advertisements on all verticals in the country. The recommendation includes four phases for the implementation of this ban, which will gradually phase out industry advertisements over the course of four years.

However, the report added that certain racing channels and programs should be exempt from this prohibition, along with smaller radio channels until the start of 2026.

Australia