A former NRL player yesterday alleged shocking inducements from betting companies to keep gambling, including receiving cocaine as well as free alcohol and food at race meetings.

Luke Bateman’s testimony came on the first day of a two-day Senate inquiry into new online gambling laws, which began yesterday.

It is examining two bills the federal government has introduced to restrict online wagering in Australia.

The betting companies denied any wrongdoing, but the allegations put the issue of betting inducements into the spotlight.

There are many critics of the changes Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced in April.

Most of the concerns raised by critics relate to the lack of a total ban on media advertising and marketing for wagering providers, which was recommended by the 2023 report of the Murphy inquiry into online wagering.

This report also recommended a host of other reforms including the abolition of inducements to gamble. This has not been proposed by the government’s bills.

Inducements were defined by the Murphy inquiry as: “advertising and direct messaging [including] offers such as deposit matches, multi-bets, bonus bets, rewards programs and early cash-outs”.

Witnesses told the Murphy committee they has been offered millions of dollars in “free betting money” and that inducements had rekindled gambling habits they had sought to escape.

Even after self-excluding from gambling operators, witnesses reported receiving inducements from other operators, or from “affiliates” who received a trailing commission for referring punters to an operator.

Amendments to the National Consumer Protection Framework for online gambling have prohibited inducements from........

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