“We can’t just redo the Constitution” – National regulator scotched as Labor commits to strengthening existing federal powers

The Labor Party’s national conference fell short of endorsing the establishment of a dedicated national gambling regulator, with a commitment made to instead strengthen the powers of existing national regulators.

The three-day conference was held in Adelaide late last week and the gambling reform debate was set to play a major role, with rank-and-file Labor members moving for a national regulator to be put on the agenda as well as an end to inducements such as bonus bets and deposit matches.

Instead, a sideline deal saw Labor opt to alter its specific language regarding the way gambling is regulated and commit to stronger action, without putting further reform to its existing proposed changes on the parliamentary agenda.

The party’s platform now states that it will “endeavour to strengthen the powers of the relevant national regulators”, and to “strengthen measures to prevent … harm” caused by gambling inducements.

“Labor will continue to work closely with people experiencing harm from gambling, their advocates, and affected stakeholders to ensure Australians are protected from gambling harms,” the revised national platform said.

“We recognise the impact that inducements can have on vulnerable people, and we will strengthen measures to minimise that harm.”

That language sharpens the intent of the policy without committing to establish a national regulator, as had been proposed in the You Win Some, You Lose More report in 2023.  

The Interactive Gambling Amendment (Gambling Reform) Bill 2026 introduced to Parliament on July 2 already gives much greater powers to the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) to enforce revised laws regarding marketing and advertising of wagering.

It is not known what additional powers the Albanese government may consider giving ACMA and other federal bodies involved in the gambling space, such as financial crimes regulator AUSTRAC.

Speaking to ABC Radio late last week, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese indicated he did not believe it was the federal government’s role to step in and oversee the multi-billion-dollar wagering industry, the regulation of which is currently the role of the states and territories.

“We have these things called states and territories that were created before federation. They exist. States do control many of these measures, just like other areas where states are in control,” he said.

“I’m the national leader, but we can’t just redo the Constitution. What we are responsible for, we are taking strong action on. We don’t control, for example, poker machines, when it comes to gambling – that’s state regulation, and having a National Regulator won’t change that. That’s just the structure of our federation.”

Critics of the current regulatory environment point to a large section of the corporate bookmaking industry being regulated by the Northern Territory, whose licensing regime is deemed preferable by over 50 bookmakers.

However, while there is grassroots support for federal oversight, there is not an appetite for that change at the senior levels of government.

When asked about whether the current proposals go far enough, Albanese has continued to defend his government’s record.

“My government is taking the strongest ever action to tackle the harms of gambling. We have new reforms that will minimise children’s exposure from the harms of advertising, to break the link between sports and wagering,” he said.

“We have a regulation that’s called the government and we have introduced legislation on top of the legislation that we’ve already, and action that we’ve already taken, in areas like introducing BetStop that has been very successful. These are significant reforms that are before the Parliament.”

The Interactive Gambling Amendment (Gambling Reform) Bill 2026, which was introduced by Communications Minister Anika Wells, is currently before a Senate review which is expected to report back in mid-August.

The legislation is likely to need the support of either the Coalition or The Greens to progress, with suggestions from within the Liberal Party that the party wanted to strengthen the existing laws.

Liberal MP Simon Kennedy told the media that the Coalition will wait to hear from the Senate inquiry before it settles on its position, but conversations were active within the party room on strengthening its response.