Hi Allegra,

Last week we found out that the gambling lobby is pouring money into the major parties to stop independents winning seats. They’re calling it their “Red-Blue” strategy—and they’re not alone.

They’ve joined the fossil fuel industry, which has donated millions to the Liberal Party and is running shady front groups and attack ads in Wentworth.

Powerful vested interests are working to silence independent voices in Parliament.

Along with other independents, I’ve stood up against the gambling lobby and fossil fuel lobby - when the major parties have been too scared to.

I’m proud to have been part of a crossbench that has helped deliver major integrity reform during this parliament, including:

• The National Anti-Corruption Commission
• An end to ‘jobs for mates’ in the tribunal that reviews government decisions on areas like immigration and social security
• A new commission to improve behaviour in parliament

But we need to do much more.

That’s why today I’m sharing with you my five-point plan to improve integrity in politics:

1. A total ban on gambling ads
2. Strengthen the National Anti-Corruption Commission
3. Legislate truth in political advertising
4. Create a new Whistleblower Protection Authority
5. End the bad behaviour in parliament

Read more about these policies on this page.

1. A total ban on gambling ads

Australians are the biggest per capita gambling losers in the world. Our gambling losses per capita are more than double those in the United States, adding up to a whopping $24 billion each year.

More than a million Australians either suffer from or live with someone suffering from, severe gambling problems

The late Peta Murphy’s parliamentary committee unanimously recommended a total ban on gambling ads. But Labor has failed to act on the committee’s recommendations and the Coalition only support a partial ban.

I have strongly supported calls from the crossbench for a total ban on gambling ads, and I will continue to do so if re-elected.

2. Strengthen the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC)

The establishment of the NACC was a big win for integrity in politics. However, during the passage of the legislation, the major parties teamed up to reduce transparency over its operations.

I want to strengthen the NACC, by:

• Giving it the power to hold public hearings whenever it is in the public interest.
• Ensuring no party has a majority vote on the NACC’s parliamentary committee.
• Expanding the powers of the Inspector to review more of the NACC’s operations.

These reforms would improve the transparency of the NACC and make sure it does a better job of rooting out corruption in our politics.

3. Legislate truth in political advertising.

Currently, it’s legal to lie in a political ad – you can even use taxpayer funding to pay for it. We’re already seeing overt lies in political advertising targeting candidates across the country, including ads placed by the coal-industry-funded ‘Australians for Prosperity’ in Wentworth.

This is completely wrong. And it undermines public trust in politics and politicians.

I want to:

• Introduce truth in political advertising laws to stop politicians or third parties from openly lying in Australian election campaign advertising.
• Regulate the use of AI/ Deepfakes relating to electoral campaigning and political communication.

We also need to amend the unfair electoral laws rammed through by the major parties earlier this year, which massively increase public funding for Labor and the Coalition, reduce competition in our democracy, and don’t get rid of big money from politics. I’m currently working with integrity groups on what these amendments could look like.

4. Protecting whistleblowers

People who expose wrongdoing should be protected, not punished.

That’s why I want to establish a new Whistleblower Protection Authority. This will make Australia’s federal whistleblowing laws work by:

• Enforcing legal protections for people who exposed wrongdoing.
• Providing support, information and assistance to prospective, current and former whistleblowers.
• Help with whistleblowing disclosures.
• Investigating and addressing complaints of unfair treatment.

5. End the bad behaviour in Parliament.

We are facing serious challenges as a country, and we need to be able to have a robust debate on issues of national importance.

But Question Time and Parliamentary debate frequently descends into shouting, mocking, and hurling insults. This behaviour would not be tolerated in any other workplace I have worked in before.

This is why I have joined other independents [link to article?] in calling for the rules in parliament to be changed, to enforce higher standards of behaviour in the chamber.

As an Independent, I work for Wentworth. I’m free to work with both sides of politics for what’s right - and I’m free to stand up against what’s not.

That means I get to decide every vote on an issue-by-issue basis, following consultation with our community and the experts.

That’s not something MPs from the major parties can say. They vote how their party bosses tell them.

I’ll continue to put our community first in the next parliament and vote 100% of the time based on Wentworth’s values.

Kind regards,

Allegra

Allegra Spender MP