Prime Minister Anthony Albanese talks a big game on gambling reform. But when it comes to actual policy, he's delivering something far short of what Australia's problem gamblers—and the advocates fighting for them—desperately need.
Analysis published in The Conversation details the growing gap between Albanese's rhetoric and reality. Despite campaign promises and mounting pressure from public health experts, the government's proposed gambling measures amount to tinkering at the edges of an industry that extracts $25 billion annually from Australian households.
Mate, this is classic Albanese—all talk, no action. The pokies industry owns too many Labor MPs through clubs, unions, and campaign donations for him to actually do anything meaningful. So we get press releases instead of policy.
Australia has the world's highest per-capita gambling losses. Australians lose more money gambling than any other nation—around $1,300 per adult annually. Poker machines, which sit in clubs and pubs across the country, account for the bulk of that harm. They're deliberately designed to maximize "time on device," using psychological manipulation to keep people playing until their money is gone.
Public health experts have been clear about what would actually reduce gambling harm: mandatory pre-commitment limits on poker machines, restrictions on bet limits and spin speeds, bans on gambling advertising during sports broadcasts, and increased funding for treatment services. Labor promised to "address problem gambling" before the 2022 election. They've delivered almost none of it.
Instead, the government has proposed watered-down measures: voluntary pre-commitment (which doesn't work), minimal advertising restrictions (full of loopholes), and vague commitments to "improve harm minimization." It's policy theater designed to look like action while protecting the industry's bottom line.
The political calculation is obvious. ClubsNSW and Clubs Australia—the industry lobby groups—have enormous influence within Labor. Clubs provide venues for community events, sponsor local sports teams, and employ union members. Many Labor MPs rely on clubs for fundraising and campaign support. Crossing the pokies lobby means risking those relationships.
But the human cost is staggering. Gambling harm destroys families, drives people to suicide, and disproportionately impacts low-income communities. The machines are deliberately placed in disadvantaged suburbs, where people can least afford to lose. It's a predatory business model that Labor refuses to meaningfully disrupt.
Independent MP Andrew Wilkie, a longtime gambling reform advocate, has accused Albanese of "betraying vulnerable Australians" by failing to act. Wilkie held the balance of power after the 2010 election and extracted gambling reform commitments from then-Prime Minister Julia Gillard. Those reforms were later gutted under pressure from the industry and Labor MPs in marginal seats.
The pattern repeats: Labor promises reform in opposition, then abandons it in government when the pokies lobby applies pressure. Albanese is following the exact same playbook.
Public opinion favors stronger action. Polling consistently shows majority support for reducing poker machine numbers, limiting bet sizes, and banning gambling ads during sports. But public opinion doesn't fund election campaigns or control votes in caucus meetings. The industry does.
Some state governments have moved further than the Commonwealth. Victoria has implemented modest reforms to reduce poker machine numbers; Australian Capital Territory has banned them entirely from clubs (though not the casino). But without federal leadership, reform remains piecemeal and easily undermined by industry lobbying at the state level.
The Albanese government argues it's "working constructively" with states and industry to develop "evidence-based" reforms. That's code for: we're going to study the problem forever and hope you forget we promised to fix it.
Meanwhile, Australians will lose another $25 billion this year to gambling—much of it to poker machines sitting in working-class suburbs, systematically extracting wealth from people who can't afford it, with a government that won't stop them.
Mate, if Albanese wanted to address gambling harm, he'd implement the reforms experts have been recommending for decades. He won't, because he values ClubsNSW's support more than problem gamblers' lives. That's the calculation, and it's not going to change unless voters force it.
