Independent Member for Kurrajong Thomas Emerson MLA will introduce a Private Member’s Bill to the Assembly this week seeking to ban political donations from the gambling industry.
Mr Emerson’s bill amends the Electoral Act 1992 to prohibit political donations from gambling industry entities and associated persons.
The bill applies to organisations whose business undertakings involve wagering, betting or other gambling. It captures casinos, licensed bookmakers, racing organisations, manufacturers of gambling products or equipment, venues with poker machines, and any entity that receives a majority of its funding from the gambling industry.
NSW banned political donations from gambling industry corporations in 2011, and extended the ban to include not-for-profit clubs with poker machines in 2023. The ACT banned political donations from property developers and their close associates in 2021.
Mr Emerson said his proposed ban was similar to the existing property developer ban.
"It’s a serious problem when politicians are captured by vested interests. The Legislative Assembly acknowledged this when it banned donations from property developers and foreign entities five years ago. It’s time to do the same with the gambling industry,” said Mr Emerson.
“Australians are the biggest gambling losers in the world. Our community overwhelmingly wants to see meaningful gambling reform. But financial ties to the gambling industry have kept the major parties from taking bold action to tackle the immense harm caused by this industry.
“We need our elected representatives to put what’s best for our community ahead of what’s best for harmful industries.”
Analysis by Mr Emerson’s office found that ACT Labor and the Canberra Liberals had collectively received more than $275,000 worth of donations from gambling industry entities in the last decade, including cash, in-kind contributions and free facilities use.
In the early 2010s, ACT Labor set up its funding vehicle, the 1973 Foundation, with almost $6.5 million in funding from the Canberra Labor Club, which operates hundreds of poker machines.
“There’s clear evidence that the gambling industry increases its political donations when gambling reform is on the agenda,” said Mr Emerson.
“The Minister for Gaming Reform has promised significant gambling harm reduction measures in this term of government. Canberrans are rightly worried that political donations will influence the Assembly’s posture toward forthcoming reforms in this area.
“We’ve already seen the Albanese Government cave to pressure from the gambling industry by announcing watered-down reforms that directly contradict advice from harm reduction experts.
“We can’t let this happen in the ACT.”
The bill also closes a loophole that has allowed parties to exclude in-kind donations of free venue hire from their weekly disclosures to Elections ACT.
Mr Emerson said he had consulted with advocacy groups, experts and people with lived experience of gambling harm in drafting the legislation, and called on all Members of the Legislative Assembly to put community interests ahead of vested interests by supporting the bill.
Quote attributable to Bill Browne, Director of the Australia Institute's Democracy & Accountability Program
"Gambling companies benefit from lax regulations, so they have a special interest in influencing government decision-making — more so than other donors. NSW has banned the gambling industry from making political donations, and it would make sense for the ACT to do the same. Australia Institute research has long identified that some corporations have a special interest in government decision making when they belong to highly regulated sectors, and that these industries should therefore be restricted in the political contributions that they can make."
Quote attributable to Kate Seselja, Co-Chair of the Canberra Gambling Reform Alliance
“As a lived experience advocate for gambling reform, I fight every day for the wellbeing of my community. It has been tough to get people elected to operate in the best interests of the whole community to act that way. What I have witnessed both locally and federally is that political donations make decisions that should be easy to make, complex or biased. When we remove the layer of political donations from the equation, especially from predatory industries, we are closer to seeing our elected representatives able to operate free from capture.”
Quote attributable to the Public Health Association of Australia
"With gambling losses devastating families and communities across Australia, it is essential that political donations from the sector be prohibited, to allow all jurisdictions to make policy in the public interest, not in corporate interests. The ACT Legislative Assembly should pass this measure as quickly as possible."
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