Australia endorses online gambling protection rules

Australian Minister's reached an in-principle agreement on the reforms, some of which will be implemented as early as July. Among the new rules, there is the establishment of a national self-exclusion register and a ban on betting companies offering lines of credit.

Operators, meanwhile, will be required to send activity statements to their customers to help them better track gambling spending. It will also be prohibited for any online gambling company to have any link to payday loans companies.

This is the new National Consumer Protection Framework, into which state and federal governments have plowed $3 million in investment. Much of that sum will go towards the establishment of a national gambling research model to help better understand the social impacts of gambling and how it can be more effectively regulated.

“Many Australians enjoy a punt and the agreement today paves the way for stronger protections for them,” said Human Services Alan Tudge, who spearheaded the reforms. “The rate of problem gambling online is three times higher than elsewhere, and online wagering is growing by 15 per cent per annum. In the future, more problems will come from online punting unless we have better protections in place.