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The Challenge
Excessive gambling tears families and communities apart. Electronic Gaming Machines (the pokies) are designed to be highly addictive and are readily available across NSW. Gambling harm is a public health issue, driven by a culture that normalises high risk gambling and a system that places the onus on individuals to “gamble responsibly” while designing machines, policy and regulation that make that as difficult as possible.
Key Data Points
- EGMs are the largest contributor to gambling harm in NSW at 54.8%.
- People in NSW lost $2.27 billion dollars to pokies in 3 months – that’s more than $1 million every hour.
- There are 87, 749 electronic gaming machines in NSW with annual profits of over $8.4 billion.
- The 2024 NSW Gambling Survey identified just over 1 in 5 respondents had experienced hambling harm, including 12.7% experiencing harm from someone elses gambling.
- Approximately 20% of licensed venues have exemptions allowing them to operate pokies between 4am – 10am; the time of highest risk.
Our Position
To reframe gambling reform as a core component of a coordinated social policy agenda, and to significantly reduce gambling harm in the community.
Current Policy Priorities
Policy Priority
Description
1. Recognition of Gambling Harm as a Public Health Issue
Position gambling harm within a public health framework like other addictions, to acknowledge its widespread and compounding impacts. This would enable more effective, coordinated, and preventative policy responses across health, justice, and community services.
2. Legislative Reform to Mandate Gaming Machine Shutdown Hours
Introduce a consistent mandatory shutdown period for all electronic gaming machines in NSW, with no exemptions, to limit continuous gambling and reduce harm associated with extended play.
3. Accountability through Measurable Harm Reduction Targets
Strengthen government and industry accountability by establishing clear, public, and measurable targets for reducing gambling harm, supported by robust data collection and regular progress reporting.
4. Transparency and Regulation that prioritises community safety
a. Require venue-level transparency, including publicly accessible data on gambling operations and compliance.
b. Reform gaming machine design and gambling environments to eliminate high-risk features.