Rebekha Sharkie, a member of the Australian House of Representatives, has introduced the Interactive Gambling Amendment (Know Your Losses Activity Statement) Bill 2025, which aims to reduce problem gambling by ensuring that customers are consistently aware of their account activity while wagering online.
The Australian bill mandates that licensed operators display real-time information from customers’ account activity prominently on wagering apps and websites at all times. This includes details such as amounts spent, bets placed, wins and losses, and overall net win/loss for the period. According to the bill, operators could meet this requirement by displaying the information via a banner at the top of the app or website screen.
A six-month transition period is proposed to allow for the implementation of necessary system and process changes. This period will also facilitate discussions between operators, peak bodies, and advocates for reducing gambling harm, particularly concerning the specific activity statement information to be displayed during wagering.
The bill establishes a criminal offense and a corresponding civil penalty for intentionally providing a licensed interactive wagering service to a customer in Australia without displaying the required real-time activity statement information. A separate offense is committed for each day the contravention continues, with an exception if the operator can demonstrate reasonable precautions and due diligence to avoid the contravention.
During the second reading, Sharkie highlighted the bill’s innovative use of existing technology and knowledge within gambling apps, stating, “This is a very exciting private member’s bill, and it’s going to use technology that exists and the knowledge that gambling apps already have.”
Sharkie also acknowledged Jake Minear, whose submission to the parliamentary inquiry into online gambling and its impacts on those experiencing gambling harm, inspired the bill. She noted that Minear’s proposal aligned well with her previous efforts to ban credit for online gambling and require customers to acknowledge their net win/loss position each time they log on to a gambling website or app.
Since mid-2022, licensed operators have been required to provide monthly activity statements to their customers, including information such as the amount spent, bets placed, wins and losses, overall net win/loss for the period, and figures illustrating wagering activity.
Additionally, a record of betting account transactions must be accessible at all times via a customer’s account window. However, this information is not currently required to be displayed during wagering.
This bill seeks to address this gap by ensuring that customers have continuous access to their wagering activity information in real time, promoting more responsible gambling behaviour.
According to the Explanatory Memorandum, the Interactive Gambling Amendment (Credit Card Ban and Acknowledgement of Losses) Bill 2023 aims to lessen problematic online gambling among Australians.
Andrew Wilkie MP, a veteran anti-gambling campaigner, has seconded the bill. The legislation was introduced on Monday and will come into force six months after receiving Royal Assent.
As reported by the Australian Associated Press (AAP), calls are growing for the Australian government to act decisively on gambling advertising, with crossbench MP Rebekah Sharkie being a prominent voice. Sharkie introduced the Interactive Gambling Amendment (Ban on Gambling Advertisements) Bill 2023 on June 19, 2023.
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