Seemingly in defiance of social distancing restrictions and intermittent shut-downs of land-based gambling in Australia, the Racing and Wagering authority in Western Australia (RWWA) has reported a record $2.4 billion in revenue. The state-run entity has boosted its promotional activities and marketing budget by 22%, over the past year. This coincided with an overall 15% drop in problem-gambling support funding, much to the displeasure of some officials.

All this is occurring against the backdrop of a year when the average Australian punter’s average weekly spend climbed by 332% as compared to pre-COVID-19 levels. Lotterywest achieved $1 billion in sales for the first time ever and mobile gambling engagement levels have also increased significantly.

The RWWA’s decision to increase its promotional funding over the pandemic has drawn the ire of at least one MP and Melanie Every, the head of the Financial Counselors’ Association of Western Australia who criticized the decision to not increase support funding as well.

Every added that players with now-elevated weekly wagering spending would find it difficult to return to their pre-pandemic behaviour. She explained that while the number of punters has begun to decrease, active gamblers who choose to bet every week are at their highest level in history. Every dubbed this the “new normal” and emphasised that support services funding for problem-gamblers has been left by the wayside.

Every identified the low number of specialized counsellors in Western Australia and poor scheduling on the government’s behalf as possible reasons for the imbalance in the allocation of funds.

The Year That Was

Over the course of 2021, approximately 50% of the revenue reported by TAB in WA was generated by just over 300 retail outlets and turnover from mobile wagering increased by 40% despite a much lower 12% increase in mobile phone users over the period. The entity recorded a $264 million margin from wagering in 2020-21, breaking all previous records.

From the data, it appears that COVID inspired an increase in gambling activity at a national level and that of the money not being spent on travel and other services, a significant portion is being funnelled into wagering.​

The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald, and 60 Minutes have released a joint report that claims that over $1bn of illicit cash is being laundered using poker machines across the country. This is corroborated by evidence released by state and federal authorities.

CCTV footage from the exhaustive investigation uncovers the criminal activity, showing a Sydney pokies venue being used to ‘clean’ tens of thousands of illegally-generated dollars.

The scheme appears to have two different components, involving several participants. A dedicated group will look for a near-guaranteed jackpot on linked poker machines, while another individual feeds banknotes into two machines simultaneously.

David Byrne, the Chief NSW gaming investigator stated that he estimates that the total amount being laundered across all Australian states with pokies at over $1bn.

Byrne’s investigative team at the NSW Gaming and Liquor department recorded 140 pubs and clubs, and more than 130 individual gamblers as being involved in money laundering activities.

Byrne shared more of his grim findings, saying,

“That’s only in the Sydney metro area, that’s not the entire NSW landscape. You’re talking about, at the worst level, child exploitation, human trafficking, firearms trafficking, terrorism funding. All of those can be packaged up in the same conversation as money laundering.”

“I don’t think that clubs, where good, family-orientated people across NSW go to have dinner, want patrons to be walking past organised criminals laundering cash. I think, based on what we’re finding, they [pokies venues] need a wake-up call, definitely,” he added.

According to the report, NSW’s 95 000 poker machines generate $1bn in state taxes annually, with the state Government projected to generate AU$2.8bn from gambling taxes this financial year.​

Researchers from Central Queensland University, armed with funding resources from the Gambling Research Australia partnership, recently released the findings of the Second National Study of Interactive Gambling.

The study included over 15 000 respondents from across the country and revealed that 17.5% of respondents had placed a remote bet during the last 2 years. Another significant revelation was that this figure translated to a two-year rise of 8.1%, following a decline in the overall gambling participation rate from 64.3% in 2010 to 56.9% in 2019.

Drilling Down

In an official press release, Professor Nerilee Hing, from the Experimental Gambling Research Laboratory at Central Queensland University, explained that 10.1% of respondents had placed a remote lottery wager over the land last two years and that 5.9% had engaged in remote race betting. Other forms of sportsbetting accounted for 5.8% of bets over the same period.

Hing’s statement read,

“This growth in online gambling has been driven by faster internet speeds, the convenience of betting on smartphone apps, extensive advertising and inducements and new betting options like multi-bets. New online activities have also been introduced including e-sports, fantasy sports, skin gambling and loot boxes.”

Archetypes

The survey paints a picture of the typical online punter in Australia as someone who engages in various forms of gambling and is more likely than not a young male, engaged in a relationship, with an above-average education level. It was further revealed that 9.1% of participants had experienced some form of gambling harm and 6% reported they had been harmed by another individual’s gambling.

Moving Forward

Gambling Research Australia is a collaborative effort between the federal, state, and territorial governments, who have advised that the study represents ‘the first national study to examine the negative consequences of gambling for gamblers, their family, and friends.’

The organization stated that it intends to use the findings ‘to further inform online gambling policy and consumer protection measures’ while authorities across various jurisdictions create safeguards for consumers.

In an official statement, Gambling Research Australia said,

“The intent of the national framework is to bring Australian consumer protection measures up to date, to ensure they reflect best practice nationally and are consistent across jurisdictions. The national framework consists of ten consumer protection measures that aim to reduce gambling harm.”​