Communications Minister Anika Wells is under fire from a host of advocates and crossbenchers for informing a former gaming addict to encourage wagering business about reforms, not her.
Kate Seselja got rid of a pokies dependency that practically resulted in her taking her own life.
Ms Seselja stated Ms Wells told her throughout a in August 2025 it was not the minister who required convincing about gambling reforms however the betting companies, television networks and sporting codes that produced income from betting.
"I was flabbergasted," Ms Seselja told AAP.
"To be asked if I had tried to have conferences with them, as a lived experience supporter, was horrific.
"To have that level of detach to the reality of betting harm faced by millions of Australians, to suggest that individuals with lived experience go meet these predators, made me lose belief in the political system."
Fellow advocate Anna Bardsley from the Gambling Harm Lived Experience Experts (GHLEE), who likewise attended the conference, substantiated the exchange.
Ms Wells' workplace did not deny the remark was made, saying the minister welcomed the chance to consult with the 2 advocates to listen to their experience with gambling damage.
A spokesperson pointed to Labor government measures including the intro of the self-exclusion register BetStop, a ban on charge card for online gaming and modifications to alerting taglines after ads.
"The Australian government takes seriously our responsibility to protect Australians, especially young and susceptible individuals, from the damages of online gambling," the representative stated.
Independent MP Kate Chaney branded the minister's remarks a betrayal of Australians experiencing gambling damage, saying they were "shocking however regrettably not unexpected".
"Being informed to lobby the gaming market yourself, after a decade of vigorous advocacy and almost losing your life to dependency, is an extensive failure of leadership," she stated.
Ms Seselja stated personnel from the interaction minister's workplace told her to keep defending reforms during a subsequent meeting in March.
"I really broke down and lost it at the staffer, due to the fact that I stated to her, if you're not going to do your job, then resource GHLEE to do it," Ms Seselja said.
"People are dying and nobody is stopping the carnage."
Independent senator David Pocock described Ms Seselja's recount as deeply troubling, while independent MP Monique Ryan assaulted the federal government for stopping working to take obligation for the problem or stand up to beneficial interests.
Alliance for Gambling Reform chief supporter Tim Costello branded the comments and inactiveness on the problem "a total failure of federal government", adding he was gobsmacked the federal government had not reacted to a gambling damage report released nearly 1000 days back.
The landmark report into gambling harm handed down in June 2023 by late Labor MP Peta Murphy suggested a phase-out of marketing, suppressing temptations and an overarching nationwide harm-reduction structure.
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Minister's Words to Gambling Reform Advocate 'Stunning'.
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