New research finds three-quarters of Australian adults have gambled at least once over the past 12 months

New research into Australia’s love affair with gambling has found three-quarters of adults have taken a punt at least once over the past 12 months — with half of those also classified as being at risk of gambling harm. The study, conducted by the Australian Gambling Research Centre, also found two out of five people who were surveyed gambled at least weekly with men betting more frequently, spending more money and more likely to be at risk of harm than women. With regards to what people gambled on, the research, released by the Australian Institute of Family Studies, found the most common were the lottery/scratchies, horse racing, sports and poker machines. It also found two-thirds of 1765 adults surveyed believed advertising for sports and race betting was “too common” and 53 per cent felt that it “normalised gambling among children”. Young people aged between 18 to 34 were more at risk of gambling harm after being exposed to wagering advertising, the report found, with one in five young women and one in seven young men starting betting for the first time after seeing or hearing an advertisement on television. It has been estimated Aussies lose around $25 billion a year on legal forms of gambling, representing the largest per capita losses in the world. And while poker machine use has been declining, online gambling has increased substantially with the sports and racing industries spending an estimated $287.2 million on advertising in 2021, the report found. Australian Gambling Research Centre executive manager, Dr Rebecca Jenkinson, said the research clearly showed the potential harm exposure to betting advertising can cause. “We know the harms that gambling causes — at an individual, family, and societal level — including impacts on finances, relationships, and health and wellbeing,” Dr Jenkinson said. “This research shows that exposure to wagering advertising is leading to riskier betting behaviour and escalating the likelihood of experiencing gambling harms. The report also captures the concerns of the Australian public that wagering advertising normalises gambling activity.” Federal Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth and Federal Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said minimising the harm associated with online gambling and gambling advertising was a priority for the Albanese Government with the first National Self-Exclusion Register (BetStop) set to be introduced in the coming months. Two new measures will also be put in place this week, they said. The Consistent Gambling Messaging measure will ensure the use of nationally consistent, evidence-based messaging that communicates the risks and potential harm from online wagering. And the Staff Training measure will require all staff involved in online wagering services to undergo a new national training program that teaches responsible online wagering. “The Albanese Labor Government is committed to creating a better Australia and minimising the harm caused by problem online wagering is an important part of achieving that goal,” Ms Rishworth said. “This research will be an important part of informing our responses going forward.” Minister Rowland said the Government was also looking into credit card betting as well as the regulation of games that contain gambling-like content “such as loot boxes and simulated gambling”. She also said the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Social Policy and Legal Affairs was currently carrying out an inquiry into online gambling and its effects on those experiencing gambling harm, including the effectiveness of current gambling advertising restrictions to limit children’s exposure to gambling products.