{"id":583992,"date":"2026-08-05T13:50:35","date_gmt":"2026-08-05T13:50:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/583992\/"},"modified":"2026-08-05T13:50:35","modified_gmt":"2026-08-05T13:50:35","slug":"labor-mps-urge-albanese-to-go-harder-on-gambling-reform-amid-illicit-drug-and-sex-worker-allegations-gambling","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/583992\/","title":{"rendered":"Labor MPs urge Albanese to go harder on gambling reform amid illicit drug and sex worker allegations | Gambling"},"content":{"rendered":"

Labor MPs are pushing for Anthony Albanese<\/a> to significantly strengthen the plan to curb online gambling advertising, after sensational evidence about betting companies providing problem gamblers with illicit drugs and access to sex workers sparked a bipartisan backlash.<\/p>\n

The government\u2019s plan to limit advertising and boost the existing self-exclusion register already faces a tough road through the Senate, with Coalition MPs urging opposition leader Angus Taylor to propose a much tougher crackdown. The Greens have dismissed Labor\u2019s legislation as ineffective.<\/p>\n

Labor MP Louise Miller-Frost told Guardian Australia she would push for action.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome of the evidence that\u2019s coming out now is very compelling,\u201d the Boothby MP said. \u201cI am shocked.\u201d<\/p>\n

Miller-Frost was part of the parliamentary inquiry chaired by the late Labor MP Peta Murphy which recommended a phased-in full ban on gambling advertising.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey are targeting a population that is known to be vulnerable, they are self-identified vulnerable population that tried to self-exclude,\u201d Miller-Frost said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe evidence that\u2019s come out around escorts and drugs is a whole other level of predatory behaviour.\u201d<\/p>\n

Labor MP Alicia Payne agreed.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur legislation is a significant step in the right direction. I think and hope we will go further,\u201d she said. \u201cThe evidence is deeply concerning, especially as anyone who has opened a sports betting app knows that inducements to bet more started straight away.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Internally, some Labor MPs say they feel emboldened by recent changes to the ALP national platform and the backlash against evidence from gambling giants Sportsbet and Tabcorp this week.<\/p>\n

Several Labor MPs acknowledged the government would need to do more, with one calling the revelations \u201cobviously disgusting\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe already know there\u2019s more work to do over time and this [committee] will highlight that \u2026 It\u2019s good that this has come out.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another Labor MP, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said they believed the inquiry would convince the cabinet to go further with reforms.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe best thing is to watch the evidence play out and I think that will be enough pressure to get some change, because it\u2019s pretty damning.\u201d<\/p>\n

Liberal Simon Kennedy, who has publicly called for stronger reforms, said the inquiry was embarrassing the government.<\/p>\n

He has pushed internally for a crackdown on gambling inducements and suggested online gambling ads should be opt-in rather than opt-out on streaming services.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey have been embarrassed by this two-day inquiry and I think it\u2019s now clear that something has gone badly wrong in the design of this legislation and they will have to strengthen it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kennedy said he had confidence in Taylor and the shadow communications minister, Sarah Henderson, would force Labor to deliver strengthened laws.<\/p>\n

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Another Liberal said Henderson needed to ensure the Coalition\u2019s final position reflected the \u201cstrong anger\u201d within the opposition and being felt by families.<\/p>\n

Anti-gambling campaigners Tim Costello and Luke Bateman alleged problem gamblers had been supplied with cocaine, alcohol and sex workers<\/a> in evidence to the committee.<\/p>\n

Bateman, an ex-NRL player and TikTok influencer, told the inquiry he attended a private Gold Coast event hosted by a gambling company at which senior figures took illicit drugs with clients.<\/p>\n

Kennedy also questioned how Labor was not aware of the impact of high level VIP inducements that Bateman revealed to the Senate.<\/p>\n

\u201cEither the PM or the communications minister knew about this behaviour and ignored it, or they didn\u2019t even consult with people who were under VIP managers,\u201d Kennedy said.<\/p>\n

Jules Norton Selzer, Sportsbet\u2019s corporate affairs director, said the company had \u201czero evidence of the allegations<\/a>\u201d, while Tabcorp\u2019s head of government affairs, Julian Whealing, said drugs and sex workers were not \u201cpart of Tabcorp\u2019s customer offering\u201d.<\/p>\n

ACT independent David Pocock<\/a> raised a constituent\u2019s complaint about gambling ads playing between Disney songs on a music streaming app.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is exactly why Australians are sick and tired of the BS you try and tell us,\u201d Pocock said.<\/p>\n

Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young<\/a> called on Albanese to listen to public anger.<\/p>\n

\u201cI urge the prime minister: read the room. Read the room. Australians want proper protections in our laws against the predatory nature of these companies,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

In Australia, Gambling Help Online<\/a> is available on 1800 858 858. The National Debt Helpline<\/a> is at 1800 007 007.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Labor MPs are pushing for Anthony Albanese to significantly strengthen the plan to curb online gambling advertising, after…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":583993,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[103,61,60,410,411],"class_list":["post-583992","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-mental-health","tag-health","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-mental-health","tag-mentalhealth"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/583992","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=583992"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/583992\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/583993"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=583992"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=583992"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=583992"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}