E&OE TRANSCRIPT
Topics: Online wagering credit card ban, JobSeeker
MICHAEL ROWLAND, HOST: Let's get more detail on the Government's move to ban using credit cards for online betting and bring in the Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth in Sydney. Minister, good morning.
MINISTER FOR SOCIAL SERVICES, AMANDA RISHWORTH: Good morning. Great to be with you.
MICHAEL ROWLAND: Great to have you on. Why are you doing this?
AMANDA RISHWORTH: We want to make sure that we are taking steps to prevent harm in online gambling. The Government doesn't begrudge anyone from having a punt, but we know in Australia the harm as a result of online wagering is growing, and we want to look at how we can minimise that. One of the obvious ways to do that is ensuring that people are not betting with money they don't have. So, by using a credit card, you're bet going into debt, and if you're using that for online wagering, you can get yourself into trouble. When it comes to things like casinos, pokies, you're not able to use a credit card for that. We are wanting to bring in line online wagering and ban the use of credit cards.
MICHAEL ROWLAND: It seems odd there's been that disparity in place for so long. Credit cards banned in casinos, but still allowed online. Why has it taken so long to move to close this gap?
AMANDA RISHWORTH: There's been a House of Representatives report that clearly said we need to do this. Our Government has been working through the details of that and we've now announced that we believe the best path forward is through legislation. We will consult across the implementation of this and we hope to legislate it later this year, but in terms of action, this really does build on what the Government has already done in terms of better taglines to prevent gambling harm. No longer will you see ‘Gamble Responsibly’. You've got a number of better taglines, including ‘You win some, you lose more’. We're taking a number of steps in how we minimise this harm. And banning credit cards is the obvious next step.
MICHAEL ROWLAND: Just on that, we've all noticed those different messages at the end of the sports betting ads, but do you still think there are way too many sports betting ads, particularly in sporting event broadcasts?
AMANDA RISHWORTH: In addition to this credit card ban and implementing a number of new measures, the Government is very much looking forward to the House of Representatives inquiry into online wagering. It's looking at a whole range of areas including advertising. We look forward to those recommendations and certainly there is appetite for a discussion about what comes next with my state and territory colleagues. I convened them for the first time since 2017 recently and we had a discussion about how we minimise harm. I think there is a really important conversation to be had that includes advertising, includes other areas where we can actually start to continue to take steps to reduce harm.
MICHAEL ROWLAND: Okay to another subject as the Minister for Social Services. Do you agree that $50 a day is simply not enough for JobSeeker recipients to live on?
AMANDA RISHWORTH: I've always said that it is difficult to live on income support. It's not easy. We will continue as a Government to work through how we can best support our most disadvantaged and vulnerable people. As the Treasurer and the Finance Minister have said, the focus of our Budget will be around cost of living, particularly targeted for our most vulnerable and disadvantaged people in this country. It includes energy relief, but we will, and certainly as Minister I will, continue to work through the best way that we can support our most vulnerable and disadvantaged with cost of living.
MICHAEL ROWLAND: Well, you've got at least ten, on my count, Labor MPs – your very own colleagues – demanding the JobSeeker payment be increased in the Budget. You've got a bit of a political problem here, haven't you, Minister?
AMANDA RISHWORTH: As I said, I am very committed to working with Government members about how we best tackle cost of living and disadvantage. I'm not surprised that Labor members care about tackling disadvantage. And so I'm really very much going to be working with my colleagues and we have a Budget coming up in just over a week's time in which, as the Treasurer and Finance Minister have said, there will be a package of how we support our most vulnerable.
MICHAEL ROWLAND: Well Labor MPs, and I'm guessing you and all of your colleagues, campaigned before the election on protecting the vulnerable. If the Labor Government got in, the vulnerable will be protected. And I hear you about the looming energy bill relief we are expecting to see in the Budget. But by not raising support payments like Jobseeker, won't you in many respects be abandoning Australia's most vulnerable?
AMANDA RISHWORTH: We have a lot of pressures on the Budget, but as I've said, we will focus on how we support people, how we support those most vulnerable in this next Budget, and I will continue to work with my colleagues in doing that. You'll have to wait to see what's in the Budget and you don't have to wait too long now. Just over a week and a bit's time.
MICHAEL ROWLAND: Yeah, we'll see what's in the Budget when it's delivered on Tuesday week. Amanda Rishworth, really appreciate your time this morning. Thank you.
AMANDA RISHWORTH: Thank you.