The Australian government is standing firm on its gambling advertising reforms despite mounting pressure from opposition politicians and independent critics.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s Labor government introduced a bill in April 2026 placing new restrictions on gambling advertising, with implementation planned for January 2027.
The bill has drawn sustained criticism from members of the Greens and the Liberal-National Coalition, who have labelled the legislation weak and insufficiently ambitious.
Independent MP and former Australian rugby union player David Pocock and Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young have been among the most vocal critics of the Prime Minister’s approach.
Albanese’s opponents argue the government has been far too slow in acting on the recommendations contained within the Murphy report on gambling reform.
The Prime Minister’s focus on poker machines is seen as a notable political choice, as the devices found in pubs, clubs and hotels across Australia have long been a target for reformers.
Opposition to pokies has broadened into wider calls for betting industry regulation, with gambling advertising in particular drawing fierce public and political scrutiny.
The government faced accusations of delaying Murphy review recommendations during election campaigning in late 2024 and early 2025, with critics suggesting officials wanted to avoid confrontation with powerful broadcasters.
Networks such as the Nine network, which broadcasts the popular Australian Football League and National Rugby League, rely heavily on gambling advertising as a major source of revenue.
Approximately 1,000 miles away, New Zealand has moved in a starkly different regulatory direction, with new online casino regulations coming into effect on 3 July 2026.
The framework sets the stage for a licensed open market of online casino operators to launch on 1 July 2027, with 15 licences available to qualifying companies.
Sports betting in New Zealand will remain tightly controlled, however, restricted exclusively to the 20-year licence held by Entain to operate the state-run TAB NZ platform.
The licensing process will be conducted across three stages, beginning with an expression of interest that opens on 17 July 2026 and closes on 14 August 2026.
Any operator wishing to advance to the second stage of the process must submit an expression of interest within that window or be excluded from consideration.
