Australians have the biggest gambling losses in the world, damning new report finds
A “hands-off approach” has made Australians the world’s heaviest gambling losers, a scathing report claims, criticising the nation for letting the industry “run rampant.”
The average Australian adult spends $1,635 a year on gambling, according to a Grattan Institute report.
That figure exceeds typical household electricity bills and far surpasses the gambling spend in comparable nations such as the US and New Zealand.
The average Australian adult spends $1,635 a year on gambling, according to a Grattan Institute report. (Nine)
In total, Australians lost $24 billion to gambling in 2020–21.
Half of that—$12 billion—was lost on poker machines.
The remainder went to sports and race betting, casinos, lotteries, and Keno.
The report notes that pokies are more common across Australia than mailboxes and public toilets.
In total, Australians lost $24 billion to gambling in 2020–21. (Nine)
Residents of the Northern Territory and NSW suffered the heaviest losses, the two regions with the highest density of pokies.
“Gambling products are deliberately addictive, with consequences that can be devastating: job loss, bankruptcy, relationship breakdown, domestic violence, even suicide,” the authors wrote.
The report urged the federal government to ban all gambling advertisements and gradually reduce the number of pokies nationwide.
It also suggested implementing a mandatory pre-commitment system for online gambling and pokies to limit daily losses.
