Minister's Words To Gambling Reform Advocate 'Stunning'.

Communications Minister Anika Wells is under fire from a host of supporters and crossbenchers for telling a previous gambling addict to convince betting business about reforms, not her.


Kate Seselja conquered a pokies dependency that almost caused her taking her own life.


Ms Seselja said Ms Wells told her throughout a meeting in August 2025 it was not the minister who required convincing about betting reforms however the wagering companies, tv networks and sporting codes that produced earnings from betting.


"I was flabbergasted," Ms Seselja told AAP.


"To be asked if I had actually attempted to have meetings with them, as a lived experience supporter, was horrific.


"To have that level of disconnect to the truth of gambling harm faced by millions of Australians, to suggest that individuals with lived experience go with these predators, made me lose belief in the political system."


Fellow advocate Anna Bardsley from the Gambling Harm Lived Experience Experts (GHLEE), who likewise went to the conference, supported the exchange.


Ms Wells' office did not deny the comment was made, saying the minister invited the opportunity to meet the 2 advocates to listen to their experience with betting damage.


A representative indicated Labor government steps consisting of the intro of the self-exclusion register BetStop, a restriction on credit cards for online gambling and modifications to alerting taglines after ads.


"The Australian government takes seriously our obligation to protect Australians, particularly young and susceptible people, from the harms of online gaming," the spokesperson stated.


Independent MP Kate Chaney branded the minister's comments a betrayal of Australians experiencing betting harm, stating they were "shocking however sadly not surprising".


"Being informed to lobby the betting market yourself, after a years of determined advocacy and almost losing your life to dependency, is an extensive failure of management," she said.


Ms Seselja stated personnel from the communication minister's office informed her to keep combating for reforms throughout a subsequent meeting in March.


"I in fact broke down and lost it at the staffer, because I said to her, if you're not going to do your job, then resource GHLEE to do it," Ms Seselja said.


"People are passing away and no one is stopping the carnage."


Independent senator David Pocock explained Ms Seselja's recount as deeply troubling, while independent MP Monique Ryan assaulted the government for stopping working to take duty for the issue or stand up to beneficial interests.


Alliance for Gambling Reform chief advocate Tim Costello branded the comments and inaction on the issue "a total failure of federal government", adding he was gobsmacked the federal government had not reacted to a betting harm report released practically 1000 days earlier.


The landmark report into gambling damage bied far in June 2023 by late Labor MP Peta Murphy recommended a phase-out of marketing, suppressing temptations and an overarching national harm-reduction structure.