Category Archives: Gambling

Federal MPs accept free sport tickets from gambling companies amid calls to restrict wagering ads

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Tabcorp and Sportsbet provided tickets to at least six Liberal and Labor politicians, register of interests shows

At least six federal Labor and Liberal politicians, including an assistant minister and shadow ministers, have disclosed they accepted free tickets to lucrative sporting events from major gambling companies in the past six months, as the government faces calls to restrict wagering ads and better regulate the sector.

Anthony Chisholm, the assistant minister for regional development and agriculture, has declared twice in recent months taking tickets and hospitality from Tabcorp for major horse race meets in Victoria and Queensland. Sportsbet, Australia’s biggest online bookmaker, also provided tickets to rugby union, the Australian Open or race meets to the Labor MPs Raff Ciccone and Dan Repacholi, Coalition shadow ministers Dan Tehan and Tim Wilson, and Liberal MP Mary Aldred.

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Key aide to Nigel Farage was frontman for Premier League billionaire’s betting syndicate, lawsuit claims

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Exclusive: George Cottrell ‘gave control’ of gambling accounts to syndicate headed by Tony Bloom, the owner of Brighton & Hove Albion FC

George Cottrell, a close associate of Nigel Farage and a key figure in Reform UK’s inner circle, acted as a front for a major gambling syndicate that was “given control” of his betting accounts, a high court document alleges.

Cottrell acted as a stalking horse for a syndicate involving one of the world’s most successful gamblers, Tony Bloom, it is claimed in the public documents, filed at the high court.

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Australia’s heaviest betters undeterred by key gambling reform, research shows

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Exclusive: Report finds ban on credit card use for online wagering results in most gamblers switching to transaction account payments

One of the Albanese government’s flagship gambling reforms, a ban on using credit cards for online wagering, had the least impact on Australia’s heaviest betters, new research shows.

The ban saw most gamblers swap their form of payment to transaction accounts and left open a range of loopholes dedicated wagerers could exploit, according to a report by the e61 Institute.

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More than 670 NSW pokies venues to be stripped of ability to stay open after 4am

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Exclusive: Government to end exemptions to mandated closing times for pubs and clubs, including those that allow 24/7 gambling

More than 670 poker machine venues across New South Wales will lose their “outdated exemptions” to operate after 4am as the state government responds to pressure to address “a public health catastrophe”.

The decision, announced by the state’s gaming minister David Harris, will ensure gaming rooms are closed at the mandated 4am deadline. Some venues are allowing them to be played 24/7.

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Couple from Kazakhstan allegedly used hidden camera and earpieces to win $1.18m from Sydney’s Crown casino

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Woman, 36, and her husband, 44, arrested at Barangaroo and charged with dishonestly obtaining financial advantage

A married couple from Kazakhstan has allegedly won more than $1m from Sydney’s Crown casino using a tiny camera hidden in a Mickey Mouse T-shirt and “deep-seated earpieces” that allowed them to communicate.

New South Wales police said on Sunday the couple, Dilnoza Israilova and Alisherykhoja Israilov, were charged with dishonestly obtaining financial advantage by deception, after being arrested in the Barangaroo casino.

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Princess of Wales calls for end to ‘stigma’ around addiction

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Forward Trust patron says ‘compassion and love’ is needed to end fear and shame felt by those affected

The Princess of Wales has called for an end to the “stigma” surrounding addictions, saying the experiences of those dependent on drugs, alcohol or gambling are “shaped by fear, shame and judgment”.

Catherine, who is a patron of the charity Forward Trust supporting recovering addicts, said more open conversations were needed to bring the issue “out of the shadows” and for society to show “compassion and love” to those affected.

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Labor urged not to ‘go soft’ on gambling ads after reports the government may resist a total ban

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Crossbenchers and gambling harm advocates criticise suggestion the long-delayed recommendation may not happen due to under-16s social media ban

Crossbench politicians and gambling harm advocates have urged the Albanese government to follow through on the late MP Peta Murphy’s long-delayed recommendation to ban wagering ads, amid media reports Labor may baulk at putting major restrictions on television and online promotions.

The Australian Financial Review reported on Thursday the government may not pursue a total ban on online gambling ads, partly due to the under-16s social media ban helping stop children seeing digital advertisements.

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Australians still betting big on Melbourne Cup, despite many saying they’re losing interest in race

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But money spent betting on horse racing overall has sharply declined amid cost-of-living pressures and regulation

Australians say they are losing interest in the Melbourne Cup and the animal welfare campaign against it has never wavered, but the amount of money gambled on the race has barely changed since the pandemic.

Wagering turnover on the Melbourne Cup has fallen only slightly from the $221m recorded in 2020 to $214m last year. The five-year average spend, according to Racing Victoria figures, remains $220m.

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Addicts who opted to be banned from gambling in Australia targeted to bet with overseas firms

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Media regulator condemns ‘deeply concerning’ third-party websites that seek to entice bets from self-declared addicts

Offshore gambling companies are using third-party websites to entice Australian addicts to resume betting, even after gamblers have placed voluntary restrictions on themselves.

The new trend, targeting those registered with the federal government’s BetStop service, has been condemned as “deeply concerning and opportunistic” by the media regulator, which has begun contacting the websites to “make them aware of Australia’s interactive gambling laws”.

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Former Wallabies star David Pocock booted from parliamentary sports club

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Exclusive: Senator accused of bringing social club into disrepute after raising concerns about its association with betting lobby

Independent ACT senator David Pocock – a former Wallabies captain – has been banned from attending Parliament House’s social sports club after raising concern about its sponsorship by the gambling industry.

The former rugby star was on Thursday night told he was no longer welcome at Australian Parliament Sports Club events, and accused of politicising the organisation. He has been removed from group chats discussing its events.

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Greens and Australian Christian Lobby form ‘unholy alliance’ to shut down late-night pokies in NSW

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Exclusive: The political foes have set aside decades of animosity to ‘work constructively on gambling reform’ after both describing the NSW government’s actions as insufficient

Limited action on gambling reform and record levels of harm have prompted “an unholy alliance” between the Greens and the Australian Christian Lobby (ACL), which has pledged to rally support for the progressive party’s legislation.

The offer of support came shortly after NSW Greens MLC Cate Faehrmann announced a bill to force the closure of all poker machine venues from 2am to 10am and remove exemptions for more than 650 pubs and clubs that can operate within this period.

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Richard Desmond legal action over National Lottery award to begin at high court

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Billionaire suing Gambling Commission for up to £1.3bn over licence award, with payout potentially funded by the taxpayer

The media billionaire Richard Desmond will begin a bitter courtroom battle with the Gambling Commission this week that could cost taxpayers hundreds of millions of pounds in a row over the licence to run the National Lottery.

Northern & Shell and The New Lottery Company (TNLC), owned by Desmond, are suing the gambling regulator for up to £1.3bn, alleging “manifest errors” in the labyrinthine competition process for Britain’s largest public sector contract, the lottery licence.

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‘Time is running out’: Sportsbet offered share of $1m in bonus bets if customers gambled on AFL grand final day

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Online bookmaker’s offer, one of a series texted during finals, was valid only if customer took up a suggested same-game multi bet

Australia’s largest online bookmaker texted customers offering a guaranteed share of $1m in bonus bets if they gambled on the morning of the AFL grand final.

The messages were among a series texted to a Victorian man’s phone by Sportsbet during the AFL finals series in an apparent attempt to entice him to gamble more.

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Lucy Powell: Labour should raise gambling taxes to axe two-child benefit cap

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Deputy leadership candidate says party needs to be ‘clear that our objective is to lift children out of poverty’

Labour should consider raising taxes on gambling firms to cover the cost of lifting the two-child benefit cap, the party’s deputy leadership candidate Lucy Powell has suggested.

The Manchester Central MP, who is battling with the education secretary, Bridget Phillipson, to succeed Angela Rayner as Labour’s deputy leader, also acknowledged the public was “exasperated” because of “some mistakes” Labour had made in office.

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Rachel Reeves due to appear at gambling lobbyist’s event amid tax review

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Chancellor’s invitation criticised as ‘strange timing’ with Treasury looking at whether to raise duties on £12bn sector

The chancellor, Rachel Reeves, has been urged to cancel plans to be the guest of honour at an event hosted by the chief lobbyist of the gambling industry while the Treasury is in the midst of a review of taxes on the £12bn sector.

Reeves is slated to appear at a “private reception” for business leaders, organised by the corporate communications company Brunswick, at the forthcoming Labour party conference in Liverpool.

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Gambling lobby’s sponsorship of Australian parliament’s sports club condemned by crossbench MPs

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Exclusive: Kate Chaney calls on PM to remove Responsible Wagering Australia’s membership, which allows sponsors to access ‘key opinion leaders’

Crossbench MPs and a transparency group have criticised the gambling lobby’s sponsorship of federal parliament’s sports club, alleging it paid to secure access to decision makers and entrench wagering’s close association with sport.

Responsible Wagering Australia has also been accused by the independent ACT senator David Pocock of “shamelessly” trying to claim it was involved with a running group devoted to eliminating suicide, which was hosted by the parliamentary sports club.

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Sportsbet advertises multi-bets on AFL website after pulling TV ads due to ‘community sentiment’

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Ads encouraging sport fans to ‘bet now’ do not breach any rules but gambling reform advocates say it shows industry attempts to self-regulate have failed

The gambling giant Sportsbet has splashed ads for its expanded same-game multi-bets on the AFL’s website, months after pulling them from free-to-air broadcasts due to “strong community sentiment”.

The ads, which reveal Sportsbet now accepts same-game multi-bets on how many possessions a player acquires during a match, encouraged people to “bet now” and surrounded the AFL homepage.

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Australian doctors call for clampdown on social media influencers allegedly glamourising poker machines

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Doctors’ warning comes after report reveals the social cost of gambling in Victoria had doubled to $14bn

The peak body for Australian doctors has urged politicians and social media companies to restrict “shocking” content of influencers allegedly glamourising poker machines on social media, in what it called an incredibly new phenomenon.

The warning comes after a report commissioned by the Victorian government found the social cost of gambling in the state had doubled – from $7bn in 2014-15 to $14bn in 2022-23 – despite fewer people gambling.

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Australian influencers warned after several accounts inadvertently promote illegal offshore bookmakers

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Exclusive: Leon Australia calls itself ‘Australia’s #1 Interactive Gaming and Sportsbook since 2008’ but is licensed in a tiny island off Africa

Social media influencers have been inadvertently promoting a gambling company that poses as an Australian outfit but is instead licensed and regulated from a tiny island off the east coast of Africa.

The influencers, including someone claiming to be “Australia’s #1 biological male” and a duo called DegenerateAngelss, have also shared financial inducements from the bookmaker that encourage Australians into opening accounts with it.

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Adult gaming centres failing to help problem gamblers self-exclude

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UK regulator expresses concern as vast majority of centres visited by the BBC did not properly implement scheme

Flaws in a scheme meant to help gamblers bar themselves from 24-hour slot machine shops have been described by the industry regulator as “very concerning”, following revelations in a BBC documentary.

The Guardian has previously revealed how gambling operators are exploiting favourable planning and licensing laws to flood UK high streets with “adult gaming centres” (AGCs), which are disproportionately concentrated in the poorest areas.

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