Overview

• The NSW Auditor-General reported that pub and club gaming machines inflicted $8.4 billion in losses on punters in 2023-24, marking a third consecutive year of rising losses.
• The total number of machines rose by 958 over the past two financial years, reaching about 87,749 by June 2024 despite the Gaming Machines Act’s aim to reduce their numbers.
• The Department of Creative Industries, Tourism, Hospitality and Sport does not set benchmarks or evaluate its compliance programs to assess harm-minimisation effectiveness.
• Calls to the GambleAware helpline grew by 8.5% in 2023-24, and the 2024 NSW Gambling Survey found no decrease in the overall level of gambling harm.
• The Minns government has not yet responded to an independent panel’s roadmap for mandatory account-based gaming after a pilot trial attracted only 32 participants.