Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he had met “zero” representatives from the gambling industry since announcing Labor’s gambling reforms in response to a question from Greens MP Elizabeth Watson-Brown about lobbyists.
Labor’s gambling reforms are expected to be finalised next week. Alex Ellinghausen
“I get that some people come to this issue from different perspectives, but rather than have a debate about the substance of the issue, to go to people’s motives is, I think, demeaning of the role of this parliament,” Albanese said.
He said he was engaging with parliamentarians across the political spectrum and had had Opposition Leader Angus Taylor in his office “more this week than I went into the prime minister’s office as leader of the opposition in three years”.
“These issues are complex,” he said. “There are issues of foreign engagement as well. The idea that gambling is an issue that just occurs on free-to-air TV, or just occurs in one area, is just not right. The idea that betting on sports is the major gambling addiction in Australia is absolutely false.
“The idea as well that these sporting codes are somehow evil, I reject. Sporting codes do a fantastic job of engaging young people, in particular, being a binding force for people’s identity with their local communities, and are really important.”
He said the Labor Party’s expanded policy platform would influence the changes, which he said would be finalised next week.