Independent politicians and reform advocates have slammed the federal government over reports it will refuse to ban gambling ads on television.
What we know:
- The Nine papers reported on Sunday that the Labor government is set to propose a ban on gambling ads on social media and other digital platforms but will allow them to continue to run on TV (The Age);
- Citing five sources briefed on the plan, the report said the government would propose a cap of two gambling ads an hour on each channel up until 10pm, and the banning of ads an hour before and after live sports;
- Communications Minister Michelle Rowland’s office met with executives from major sporting codes, gambling companies and media networks late last week, with non-disclosure agreements signed (AFR);
- They now have a week to argue their case before the proposal is finalised and goes to cabinet;
- It comes a year after a parliamentary committee led by the late Labor MP Peta Murphy recommended a “comprehensive ban on all forms of advertising for online gambling” to be introduced in four stages across three years;
- Independent Senator David Pocock accused the government of a “total cop out” and said the reported proposal would be a “watered down policy to appease the gambling industry”, while independent MP Zoe Daniel said it was a “half-hearted, half-arsed” proposal (The Guardian);
- Independent MP Kate Chaney said Labor was “kowtowing to the power of the media companies, sports codes and gambling companies who are all profiting from people’s misery” (The Age);
- The rejection of a complete ban on TV gambling ads would be a “betrayal of the late Peta Murphy’s legacy”, Pocock added;
- Meanwhile, polling has revealed that many of the teal independents are at risk of losing their seats at the next election (The Saturday Paper).
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has been accused of breaking an election promise after he moved away from the concept of a standalone Truth-telling commission, nearly a year after the unsuccessful referendum on an Indigenous Voice to Parliament.
What we know:
- A Makarrata commission is a key element of the Uluru Statement from the Heart and would oversee the Truth-telling and Treaty components (The Saturday Paper);
- Albanese attended the Garma festival in north-east Arnhem Land over the weekend and endorsed the principle of Truth-telling but did not back the establishment of a formal truth and justice commission (ABC);
- The Labor government has previously committed to implementing the Statement from the Heart in full, and has set aside $5.8m for the establishment of a Makarrata commission;
- But Albanese over the weekend said that a standalone commission is “not what we have proposed”, and that what Labor will pursue is “Makarrata just being the idea of coming together” (The Guardian);
- The prime minister said this will involve the government consulting with Indigenous organisations on ways to address disadvantage;
- Uluru Dialogue co-chair Pat Anderson said that “Makarrata is not a vague vibe or a series of casual conversation”, but that it is a “bricks-and-mortar body and it was a clear election promise” (The Australian);
- Opposition Leader Peter Dutton accused Albanese of “talking out of both sides of his mouth” on the Makarrata issue;
- Meanwhile, Northern Territory Police Commissioner Michael Murphy has made a historical formal apology to First Nations Territorians for racist treatment by police over the last 154 years (The Guardian);
- Murphy said that the NT police have favoured the protection of “settlers” over Indigenous people, and that he was “deeply sorry for the hurt and injustices” caused over this time.
Kamala Harris is meeting with prospective vice-president picks and will announce her running mate to take on Donald Trump and JD Vance within days (NYT).
Harris is hosting the top picks at her residence in Washington, DC, and will announce the candidate before a tour of key battleground states this week.
The main contenders for VP include Arizona Senator Mark Kelly, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro.
Harris’s camp has railed against a proposal by Trump for a debate on Fox News after he backed out of a planned debate on ABC News next month (ABC).
Meanwhile, a judge has rejected Trump’s efforts to dismiss a case accusing him of attempting to subvert the 2020 election, saying that the charges were not political but about him “knowingly making false statements in furtherance of criminal conspiracies and for obstruction of election certification proceedings” (The Guardian).
New Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke has confirmed he is investigating ways to extend the visas of Palestinians who have fled the war in Gaza (SBS).
There were reports last week that the federal government may establish a special visa pathway for Palestinians, but no details have been revealed.
Burke over the weekend said that “certainly no country in the world would send people back to Gaza at the moment”.
More than 2000 Palestinians have been granted visitor visas to Australia since the war, and many of these are set to expire (The Guardian).
Burke confirmed the government was looking at how to extend these visas, with many calling for a special humanitarian pathway similar to that offered to Afghans in 2021 and Ukrainians in 2022.
New ABC chair Kim Williams has criticised the public broadcaster’s online news offerings and an apparent prioritisation of lifestyle content over hard news (SMH).
Williams, who was appointed as ABC chair in March, addressed Radio National staff last week and criticised the broadcaster’s lack of coverage of global news events such as the war in Gaza, the NATO Summit and foreign politics for its online readers.
He said there was an “idiosyncratic selection of story priorities” and called for a “better coherent logic”, saying that he made “no apology for the fact I think news should be prioritised appropriately”.
Williams has been tasked with rebuilding the ABC and implementing its existing five-year “digital-first” strategy (The Saturday Paper).
