Lobbyists' Parliament House passes now listed alongside the MPs who sponsor them
Lobbyists and other private interests with passes to private offices in Parliament House, and the MPs who sponsored those passes, are now on a public register. The first data under the new register was released on Tuesday, 3 November 2026, and more than 1,000 applications are yet to be processed, The Guardian reported.
Outside groups get these passes through a sitting MP or senator who sponsors them. Holders of sponsored passes can move around Parliament House without an escort. Under the updated rules, two MPs are required to sponsor a lobbyist before that person can register for a pass. The primary sponsoring MP is responsible for the lobbyist's behaviour, The Guardian reported in June.
The data cited by The Guardian shows Labor and Coalition members sponsoring access for resource companies. Woodside Energy holds three cards sponsored by Labor MPs Meryl Swanson, Glenn Sterle and Tracey Roberts, and by Coalition MPs Melissa Price, Rick Wilson and Susan McDonald. The Minerals Council of Australia holds passes sponsored by Susan McDonald, Angie Bell, Matt O'Sullivan, Ted O'Brien and Dan Repacholi. ConocoPhillips has access sponsored by Nationals MP Colin Boyce and Labor MP Mike Freelander. Labor's David Smith, the member for Bean, sponsors the gas lobby group Australian Energy Producers.
Dan Repacholi, a Labor MP, sponsors access for the Minerals Council, the Pharmacy Guild and Alinta Energy. Shadow energy minister Dan Tehan sponsors access for Alinta Energy alongside Repacholi. The Pharmacy Guild's two sponsored passes were signed by Labor MPs Gordon Reid, Anne Urquhart, Dan Repacholi and Josh Dolega.
Two passes for Responsible Wagering Australia, a group for the betting companies bet365, Sportsbet and Betfair, are sponsored by shadow health minister Anne Ruston and Labor's Raff Ciccone. The group's chief lobbyist, Kai Cantwell, is a former staffer to Ruston when she was a minister in the Morrison government.
Other sponsorships include lobbyist Ben Oquist, who is sponsored by Energy Minister Chris Bowen and Industry Minister Tim Ayres. Oquist is a former Greens staffer and the husband of Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young. Greens leader David Shoebridge sponsors access for the Australian Peace and Security Forum. Independent senator David Pocock sponsors passes for the Australian Construction Industry Forum, Bees and Blossoms, Queensland University of Technology and Teach Us Consent Global.
The updated rules were reviewed by House Speaker Milton Dick and Senate President Sue Lines. The Guardian reported that more than 2,000 pass holders had access to Parliament House with no public transparency before the new disclosure rules. In mid-2024 there were more than 2,050 sponsored passes, and the share held by paid lobbyists was not known.
In March, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese suggested greater "transparency and rigour" for sponsored passes. The Alliance for Gambling Reform has raised concerns about both the number of sponsored passes and the secrecy surrounding them.
