Samantha Donovan: In Melbourne, a forensic accountant has told an inquest that betting companies had provided dozens of inducements and bonus bets to a young man who died by suicide. Kyle Hudson lost tens of thousands of dollars wagering on sport. The inquest into the death of the 22-year-old is being viewed by proponents of reform as a landmark inquiry into the impact online gambling can have on young men. Oliver Gordon reports.

Oliver Gordon: At a university in Melbourne, young men have different views about betting. 25-year-old Harry is sick of how many ads there are.

Harry: It feels like sometimes every second ad is the boys at the races or something, and it’s just a bit ridiculous.

Oliver Gordon: He’s not a problem gambler, but has had a punt before and can see how people could get hooked.

Harry: Watching the numbers, the disposals go up by the minute and waiting for that sort of multi to go through was quite a rush. And so, yeah, I do kind of get it.

Oliver Gordon: Meanwhile, 25-year-old Aidan has seen betting on sport and other events become normalised.

Aidan: Looking at those around me anecdotally, it’s become quite an issue. My brother does it, you know, everyone kind of around it does it from time to time. Like, some friends do it. I think it is quite a big issue. And with the likes of, what is it, Kalshi and Polymarket also jumping into the entire global scene, that’s also an issue. So I think, yeah, something needs to be done about it because it’s kind of stealing a lot of wealth and opportunity from young people and playing it as a game to win that you most likely won’t win in.

Oliver Gordon: Australians lose $32 billion on legal forms of gambling each year, more per capita than anywhere in the world. This week, the Victorian coroner has been looking into the tragic 2021 death of 22-year-old Kyle Hudson. The inquest, which is ongoing, has this week heard that on the same day Mr Hudson died by suicide, the university student had placed two online sports bets worth more than $6,000. Throughout his life, he gambled more than $895,000 with an overall net loss of more than $47,000. Today, forensic accountant Cameron Gray detailed the dozens of bonus bets and inducements offered to Mr Hudson in the lead up to his death. Victorian coroner Paul Lawrie is examining Mr Hudson’s history of online gambling to see if it contributed to his decision to end his life. The inquest continues. Outside the proceedings, the push for stronger gambling regulations continues.

Mark Kempster: We have a gambling industry who can send out bonus bets and deposit matches and credit lines to customers just to keep them gambling.

Oliver Gordon: Mark Kempster is a lived experience advocate with the Alliance for Gambling Reform.

Mark Kempster: That’s the whole incentive of these inducements, is to get someone keeping them on their platform longer to lose more money. That’s the whole idea of them. So we wouldn’t allow it with cigarettes. We wouldn’t allow it with any type of other alcohol products or anything like that that we know that are addictive. And so I don’t really understand how we can allow such an addictive product to be given out to people just to keep them betting longer and keep them using the platforms longer. And we see the consequences of it. That is a horrible example of what can happen. But I’ve heard so many cases of that.

Oliver Gordon: The anti-gambling advocate says he’s lost more than $100,000 to gambling over the years and believes a total ban on gambling advertising, as well as a national regulator to monitor betting companies, is needed.

Mark Kempster: The lack of duty of care around all this is just shocking. And to actually stop it, we need a national regulator in place to keep an eye on this industry, because at the moment they’re acting with complete free reign and they know there’s basically no consequence for their action from their end.

Oliver Gordon: The Albanese government this week tabled its formal response to the Murphy report into online gambling. It did not opt for a full ban on online gambling advertising, as the report recommended, instead opting for a partial ban which is ramped up at certain hours. It’s also opting not to instate a national gambling regulator.

Samantha Donovan: Oliver Gordon with that report. And if that story has raised concerns for you or anyone you know, please do call Lifeline on 13 11 14.