Kate Chaney (Curtin, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Australians are asking why the government has failed to respond to the Murphy review's unanimous recommendation to ban gambling ads. No-one in this chamber is seeking to ban gambling, despite what you've said, and when asked about reform you list actions that were announced before the Murphy review. Many members of your own party support an ad ban. Why won't you allow a free vote on a ban on ads for online gambling?

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for her question to me as Prime Minister, but I'm also the Leader of the Australian Labor Party. We are a political party, not a bunch of individuals. We make decisions in our caucus that make a difference, and, when we make decisions in our caucus, that results in action. Those opposite—

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The Prime Minister will pause. The member for Cowper yelling like that is highly disorderly. The member for Curtin was heard in silence. I'm going to ask everyone to take the temperature down. I can't hear a word that's being said. The Prime Minister deserves the respect of being heard in silence—as the questioner was, who will want her answer.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

People have a choice about what political path they will take and how they will participate in politics. People can participate as Independents and wait for decisions to be made by government, and then decide whether they'll support them, oppose them or try to amend them. I respect that, and I respect the member for Curtin and the way she takes policy development seriously in this chamber. She has put forward a range of amendments to government legislation that have been supported by the government in the last term and this term, and I encourage her to continue to do so. We treat every member of parliament with respect. That hasn't always been the case for governments, but we do that.

We have introduced more legislation to tackle problem gambling than any government since Federation. One of the things that we continue to do is work with organisations, including media organisations, including sporting organisations, on ways in which we can move forward to further tackle the problem gambling issue. We will have further measures, but we won't do it by pretending that we can just wave a wand and fix things immediately with one piece of legislation. We'll continue to do it piece by piece to make a difference, and that's precisely what we are doing.