The ongoing debate on how Australia will choose to reform its gambling advertising laws has reached the boardrooms of TV networks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Alliance for Gambling Reform (AGR) <\/strong>launched a campaign targeting the shareholders of Australian TV networks to support a blanket ban on gambling advertising.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The campaign is led by the \u2018chief advocate\u2019, Reverend Tim Costello<\/strong>, who is the brother of Nine\u2019s former Chairman, Peter Costello<\/strong>, as gambling advertising conflicts turn into family affair.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The campaign urges shareholders of Nine and Seven West Media (SWM) to bring forward a resolution for a blanket ban on gambling advertising to be voted on at the broadcasters\u2019 upcoming AGMs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The AGR states that it requires 100 shareholders to mobilise and propose its shareholder resolution to Nine and SWM as a matter of ethical investing and shareholder advocacy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The investors and boards of Nine and SWM will decide whether to end all gambling advertising across the broadcasters\u2019 networks, including television, radio, streaming, digital, and publishing platforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Reverend Costello advocated for bringing the resolution directly to shareholders: \u201cWe can\u2019t achieve gambling reform until we\u2019re inside these companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019ve bought the minimum parcel of shares in these companies. If others do the same or use their existing shares to support this campaign, that\u2019s how we get inside these companies and push for change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe media companies are completely out of touch when it comes to gambling ads. Seven out of ten Australians want gambling advertisements on TV to be banned. Australians lose $25 billion each year to gambling<\/strong>, the highest per capita spend in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The AGR has criticised the Labor government for stalling its decision to implement a blanket ban on gambling advertising, as recommended by the Murphy Report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Led by the late Labor MP Peta Murphy<\/strong>, the inquiry proposed 31 reforms to address gambling harms, including a phased ban on online gambling advertising over three years and a \u2018Harms Levy\u2019 on operators to fund awareness and treatment programmes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Labor government initially supported these reforms, indicating a commitment to reducing gambling harms, following previous measures like a credit card ban on gambling transactions and a national self-exclusion scheme.<\/p>\n\n\n\n