Australia politics live: Nine CEO Mike Sneesby to step down; Greens prepare anti-price gouging bill | Australia news

Nine chair Catherine West also sent an email to staff about Mike Sneesby’s departure, where she listed what she said was his achievements over the last three-and-a-half years as CEO.

Among the achievements:

Initiated the development of the company-wide Values and Purpose, expanded Nine’s leadership programs and instigated the cultural review process to enable issues to be identified and addressed to ensure ongoing cultural improvement.

Mike Sneesby says culture review ‘progressing’ at Nine

In his email to staff, Mike Sneesby acknowledged some of the cultural issues which have been revealed at the Nine network:

Our culture review is progressing, with Intersection compiling your input and conversations into their report.

It will build on the work we have done over the past three years to enhance our culture and employee engagement, including embedding our purpose and values to provide the foundation for a high-performance culture.

As I said from the start, we will share the findings of the culture review when Intersection has completed its work, which is expected to be in October.

Our board and leadership team remain committed to taking on the report findings and using them constructively to ensure we continue our path of cultural improvement.

I am grateful for the incredible friendships and personal relationships I have built with so many of you over the years – and I know those will continue in the years to come. We have shared some great adventures and achieved so much together – these are things I will remember fondly.

Sneesby says he will ensure ‘seamless handover’ to acting CEO Matt Stanton

Mike Sneesby’s contribution to that announcement was:

It has been a privilege to lead this business but now is the right time to hand over to a new leader. I take great pride in the achievements of the company during my time as CEO and thank the board, the leadership team and everyone at Nine for their support during my tenure.

Together, we have navigated significant change in the media landscape in Australia. I firmly believe Nine is Australia’s best media business, with premium assets and the sector’s leading media professionals.

I am confident in the future of Nine and remain committed to ensuring a seamless handover to Matt.

Nine chair thanks Sneesby for ‘significant contribution’

Mike Sneesby will officially step down on 30 September.

In the official announcement to the ASX, Nine chair Catherine West said:

On behalf of the board, I thank Mike for his significant contribution to Nine over more than a decade. As chief executive officer, his achievements include guiding the company out of the challenging Covid-19 pandemic, securing the rights to the Olympic Games through to 2032 and progressing the strategic and cultural transformation of Nine. The world-class coverage of Paris 2024 showcased the power of the Nine’s diversified portfolio of premium media assets. It’s also important to acknowledge Mike’s immense contribution to the success of Stan, building a successful streaming service that now boasts a broad entertainment and sport footprint with more than 2 million paying subscribers.

Mike Sneesby’s departure comes after months of upheavel at Nine, which started when the former news and current affairs director Darren Wick abruptly left Nine in March after 29 years with the company after a formal complaint from a staff member.

Staff reported predatory behaviour was “known and tolerated” at the network.

In June, the chair of Nine Entertainment, Peter Costello, resigned, days after the former federal treasurer was accused of assaulting a News Corp journalist at Canberra airport.

Mike Sneesby says he will ‘consider new opportunities in 2025’

Mike Sneesby sent an email to all Nine staff, saying that after 10 years (combining his time as chief executive of Nine and as the founder and CEO of the streaming service Stan) “I will be stepping down”.

I want to be completely open about the circumstances surrounding my departure. To give some context, this year has been one of the most challenging of my career – one where our resilience has been tested.

Despite the intensity of the scrutiny, my focus has not wavered from achieving the best outcomes for our people and for Nine.

In recent months, I have reflected greatly on my plans for the future, and in consultation with my family and those close to me, I made a personal decision to consider new opportunities in 2025.

Nine chief executive Mike Sneesby stepping down

Tim Costello says size of gambling losses is Australia’s ‘blind spot’

Tim Costello said the major issue when it came to gambling reform in Australia was the influence of the gambling industry itself:

I’ve said for a long time, the blind spot in America is guns.

The blind spot in Australia, when the rest of the world looks at us, is gambling, the greatest gambling losses.

And you have to explain how we have the greatest gambling losses and gambling in the world.

And it’s because the industry has claimed it culturally, it has said, this is a fundamental Aussie right. We’re baptised into eucalyptus oil at birth and a punt.

And actually the Chinese, the Kiwis, the Irish, all boast being the greatest gamblers on Earth.

This is not unique to Aussie DNA at all. So how come we’ve got the greatest gambling losses? Because the industry have wrapped that in being Australian.

Costello says he hasn’t met with PM on gambling since July last year

Tim Costello said he has had very limited consultation with the prime minister on the issue:

I saw him in July last year, just after the [Peta] Murphy report had come down.

I was surprised that I was seeing him before he had actually seen Peta Murphy, because she was ringing me to ask, you know, how did it go? What did he say? She hadn’t seen him even though she brought down the report and was waiting.

That’s the only consultation I’ve had.

Not since July last year,

I bumped into him in a coffee shop in Frankston, in the Dunkley byelection, and we might have had 30 seconds on gambling, we talked about mainly other things, but no other consultation besides that, that’s been it.

Tim Costello said this is his position on gambling:

I think all adults should be able to gamble. It’s a legal pastime. And when I started questioning the number of pokies we had, I never said we should abolish all pokies. I said we should slow them down. We should not have so many.

When I started questioning Jeff Kennett, who opened the casino in Melbourne, saying it represents the beacon of hope for Melbourne, the new spirit of Victoria, I said these words, spirit and hope, shouldn’t be applied to a casino but I’ve never said we shouldn’t have a casino.

When it comes to sports betting, absolutely, adults should be allowed to be bet.

And my point is very simple. Every if we ban the gambling ads, every gambler would still know exactly where to go to be able to place a bet.

And that’s entirely their right, and I support that right, without the adjustments, without the bonuses, without our kids being [targeted] and Albo knows, he knows that’s my position.

Tim Costello says he is not a gambling prohibitionist and he is ‘disappointed’ in Albanese

The chief advocate of the Alliance for Gambling Reform, Tim Costello, has spoken to ABC radio RN Breakfast, responding to Anthony Albanese’s comments in question time yesterday.

In case you missed it, Albanese was speaking about the consultations the government has had with anti-gambling advocates, including Costello, and some wanted a total ban of gambling.

Costello says he has never advocated for a total ban, so he would like to know who the prime minister was talking about:

I’m very disappointed – Albo knows exactly my view.

In 30 years of advocating reform, I’ve never been prohibitionist, never had and I actually don’t even know anyone who wants to prohibit all gambling.

So maybe Albo could explain who he’s talking about.

Look, I’m actually saddened for Albo. He should be better than that. Look, I respect him. He’s been to my home. He knows exactly what my position is. It’s for reform and banning gambling ads.

While we are on the topic of the proposed social media age verification policy, Prof Patrick McGorry, who helped establish Headspace, is also a critic:

Josh Taylor has spoken to the Alannah & Madeline Foundation, which Anthony Albanese name-checked in a News Corp opinion piece on the social media age ban to see what they think of the proposal.

You can read what he found out, here:

A child protection organisation cited by the prime minister in an opinion piece arguing for his government’s policy to ban younger teens from social media says the ban is unlikely to make any difference, and could create more harm for kids.

After his announcement the government would introduce legislation to ban younger teens and children from social media by the end of the year, Anthony Albanese wrote in a Wednesday opinion piece in the Herald Sun that the response had been led by “many mums and dads … pushing for change”, and a “strong campaign” from the paper.

Albanese said parents were seeking help on the issue of social media and that the government was partnering with the Alannah & Madeline Foundation, a charity committed to protecting children from violence, on digital literacy programs in schools.

The foundation’s chief executive, Sarah Davies, told Guardian Australia that while it was not opposed to raising the age limits on social media, it did not believe it would make any difference.