Michelle Rowland warns ‘status quo isn’t good enough’ on gambling advertising

theguardian.com:

The communications minister, Michelle Rowland, has warned the “status quo isn’t good enough” on gambling advertising as the independent Zoe Daniel and some Labor MPs push for a ban on the ads.

Daniel introduced to parliament on Monday a private member’s bill that would place an outright ban on gambling ads on radio, broadcast television, pay TV and their respective streaming services.

The independent MP told the lower house that it was “all very well” for the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, and the opposition leader, Peter Dutton, to say they’ve had enough, but it was time to “do something”.

The Labor MP Mike Freelander endorsed Daniel’s bill over the more limited proposal by Dutton to ban ads during sports matches and an hour either side of them.

Freelander told Guardian Australia that his view is gambling ads are “insidious and malignant” because they are “aimed at young adults and our kids”.

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“I don’t think we should be having them on our screens or on our radio. It’s a dangerous industry that has led to a lot of misery.

“The gambling industry has a lot to answer for – when it comes to regulating the ads, the stricter the better, as far as I’m concerned.”

Albanese has expressed a personal dislike for gambling advertising but the government says it is waiting for a parliamentary inquiry into online gambling and the effect of advertising on children before introducing its own reform.

Freelander defended the government’s pace of reform, insisting that Rowland “is determined to do it, but wants to get it right”.

Graham Perrett, the Labor member for Moreton, said he “shares” Daniel’s concern but added that “good legislation