Key facts
- Woodside Energy holds three access cards sponsored by Labor's Meryl Swanson, Glenn Sterle and Tracey Roberts and Coalition MPs Melissa Price, Rick Wilson and Susan McDonald.
- The Minerals Council of Australia has passes sponsored by Susan McDonald, Angie Bell, Matt O'Sullivan, Ted O'Brien and Dan Repacholi.
- Responsible Wagering Australia, representing bet365, Sportsbet and Betfair, has two passes sponsored by Anne Ruston and Raff Ciccone.
- The Australian Democracy Network said as many as 80% of registered lobbyists are still not on the register.
- Christian Slattery of the Australian Democracy Network said the partial disclosure covers about 10% of total existing passes.
Australia's Parliament published on Tuesday the first register of MPs who sponsor access passes for lobbyists and other private interests, a release that named sponsors from Labor, the Coalition and the Greens but left more than 1,000 applications unprocessed.
Woodside Energy, Australia's largest fossil fuel company, holds three access cards sponsored by Labor politicians Meryl Swanson, Glenn Sterle and Tracey Roberts, as well as Coalition MPs Melissa Price, Rick Wilson and Susan McDonald. The Minerals Council of Australia has passes sponsored by McDonald, Coalition frontbenchers Angie Bell, Matt O'Sullivan and Ted O'Brien, and Labor's Dan Repacholi.
ConocoPhillips has access sponsored by Nationals MP Colin Boyce and Labor's Mike Freelander, while gas lobby group Australian Energy Producers is sponsored by David Smith, the member for Bean. Shadow energy minister Dan Tehan sponsors access for Alinta Energy, along with Repacholi. Repacholi also sponsors the Minerals Council, the Pharmacy Guild and Alinta Energy.
Shadow health minister Anne Ruston and Labor's Raff Ciccone are primary sponsors for two passes held by Responsible Wagering Australia, which represents betting giants bet365, Sportsbet and Betfair. The group's chief lobbyist, Kai Cantwell, is a former staffer to Ruston when she was a minister in the Morrison government and was a key witness in an inquiry considering Labor's legislation to curb gambling advertising earlier this year.
Under the new rules, two MPs are required to sponsor lobbyists to register for a pass. Until now, there has been no transparency about the more than 2,000 pass holders with access to the building, which has led to frustrations among MPs including ACT independent David Pocock. A review of the policies governing access to the building's private areas was conducted by House speaker Milton Dick and Senate president Sue Lines. In March, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese suggested greater transparency and rigour of sponsored pass holders was needed.
Prominent lobbyist Ben Oquist, a former Greens staffer and the husband of Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young, is sponsored by energy minister Chris Bowen and industry minister Tim Ayres. Greens leader David Shoebridge sponsors access for the Australian Peace and Security Forum, a registered non-profit helping lead a public inquiry into the Aukus defence pact. Pocock sponsors passes for the Australian Construction Industry Forum, Bees and Blossoms, Queensland University of Technology and Chanel Contos's Teach Us Consent Global organisation. The Pharmacy Guild has two sponsored passes, signed by Labor's Gordon Reid, Anne Urquhart, Repacholi and Josh Dolega.