10 April 2026 500 days of continued harm. 30 recommendations. No response. NSW Government yet to respond to landmark gaming reform report April 10 marks 500 days since the NSW Independent Panel for Gaming Reform handed its final report, a 30 point roadmap focused on mandatory cashless gaming and stronger harm minimisation, to NSW Minister for Gaming and Racing, David Harris. Five hundred days on, the NSW Government has yet to formally respond. The Independent Panel's recommendations were designed to reduce gambling harm through practical, evidence-based reforms, including the introduction of mandatory cashless gaming across NSW poker machines.
Gambling harm has continued to deepen in the past 500 days. Since the roadmap was delivered:
- NSW recorded its highest ever annual poker machine losses, with ~$9.3 billion lost in 2025 alone.
- Losses accelerated toward the end of the year, with $2.45 billion lost in the final quarter, averaging around $26.7 million every day.
- 87,839 poker machines continued operating across clubs and hotels in NSW.
- Canterbury-Bankstown and Fairfield LGA's reported losses of more than $2million a day with Tweed, Central Coast, Wollongong and other LGAs continuing to report record losses
- Research has found that people experiencing high‑risk gambling are around four times more likely to report suicidal thoughts
- New NSW research commissioned by the Responsible Gambling Fund found a statistically significant and likely causal link between gaming machine exposure and domestic and family violence, with impacts strongest in metropolitan Sydney and parts of northern and northwestern NSW.
Tricia, who has lived experience of gambling harm, says the gap between personal recovery and policy action is stark. "In the past 500 days, I have continued to do the hard work to rebuild my life. "What is harder to accept is individuals are expected to change while the system remains the same. The harm is still happening and the recommended reforms remain unactioned."
Wesley Mission General Manager, Joel MacKay, says at some point, silence becomes a decision and communities are left to live with the consequences. "Five hundred days, thirty recommendations, no response. We do not have a knowledge problem, we have an action problem. The roadmap is there. The government asked for this advice. What is missing is a response and a timeline. "Every day without action is another day people experience harm we already know how to reduce. At this point, silence is no longer neutral. It has real consequences for individuals, families and communities."
MacKay says the recommendations are ready to be implemented and require a clear government response. "This is not about starting from scratch, we have already done the work. The recommendations are practical, evidence-based and ready to go."
"Premier Minns cannot afford to sit on an expert report for years, only to emerge after 1,000 or 2000 or 3000 days with half measures that fall short of what is needed. NSW has the opportunity to act earlier and do better."
Wesley Mission is calling on the NSW Government to formally respond to the Independent Panel's report and outline a clear timeline for implementation because after 500 days, communities deserve more than silence.
