Andrew Wilkie (Clark, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I've got a lot of time for the Prime Minister. I think he's a pretty decent character and I think he's doing a pretty good job. But I will not be silent as he continues to stand in the way of meaningful gambling reform in this country. I will not stay silent when I see him continue to silence his backbenchers who want to see meaningful reform. No wonder there's a kerfuffle in the cabinet, when so many members of his own government are outraged that the government has not even bothered to respond to the report by the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Social Policy and Legal Affairs, known as the You win some, you lose more report—known more often, actually, as the Murphy report, seeing as the late Peta Murphy was the chair of that very important committee.

How on earth the Prime Minister can continue to obstruct meaningful reform and continue to tolerate the government not even responding to that report absolutely beggars belief. Did you know, Speaker, that that report was handed to the government more than 1,000 days ago? We know from good research that, in that period of a thousand days, well over 1,000 Australians affected by gambling addiction have suicided. That is the human face of this matter—that over a thousand people affected by gambling addiction have suicided since that report was brought down. That's not to mention—well, I will mention—the hundreds of thousands of people who are suffering the ill effects of gambling addiction, have lost more money than they can afford and are in dire financial strife, have lost their jobs, have lost relationships, have lost their families and have lost their mental health. We also know, from credible research out of Victoria, that, after drug addiction, gambling addiction is the second-most prevalent reason for crime in that state, yet the government continues to stand by and do nothing.

I was outraged—I think a lot of people were outraged—the other day when the member for Curtin asked a very reasonable question of the Prime Minister in question time. She asked, 'When will the government respond to that report that was handed to the government over a thousand days ago?' And the Prime Minister stood there and he misled the parliament when he said that the government had responded to the report and had implemented those 31 recommendations. But, in fact, when you look at those recommendations in detail, it is patently obvious that the government has not introduced a single one of those reforms—not one out of 31. It certainly has not implemented the flagship reform of a phased ban on gambling advertising.

Then, to make matters even worse, the Prime Minister referred to BetStop, which, yes, I agree with the Prime Minister, is a very good reform. It's not a silver bullet, but it is helping thousands of Australians to deal with gambling addiction. But that reform was an initiative of the Morrison government. It was not an initiative of the Labor government in this parliament or the previous parliament; it was a coalition reform. It's bad enough that the government hasn't even responded to the Murphy report, but to be crowing about the achievements of other governments and making them its own is quite scandalous—and the public see through this.

No wonder there is this kerfuffle in the Labor caucus among numerous backbenchers, some of whom have spoken to me about this. A number of members of the opposition have also spoken to me about this. They all agree it is completely and utterly unacceptable that the Prime Minister stands in the way. I'm focusing on the Prime Minister because it is patently obvious that a majority of members of this House, and a majority of members of the government, want to see the Murphy report recommendations implemented speedily and in full. It's an open secret in this place that the only reason nothing is happening is the Prime Minister is personally standing in the way because he's putting his relationship with the sporting codes, the gambling companies and the media companies ahead of the interests of millions of Australians who are affected by this.