Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Amendment

“The Albanese Labor government is committed to protecting the integrity of our economy and preventing criminal organisations from exploiting Australians for profit. We're about protecting Australians against corruption, terrorist funding, and the ripping off of vulnerable Australians. To those who believe crypto ATMs provide a new avenue to hide criminal proceeds from law enforcement, let this message be clear. We are closing the gap, we are strengthening the system and we are giving agencies the powers they need to stop illicit activity and bring an end to money laundering. If you seek to exploit these technologies, to launder criminal profits, to evade detection or to prey on Australians, you are not beyond reach. I commend this bill to the House.”

Australian Labor Party • MP • 09 Sept 2026

“The importance of this bill cannot be underestimated. Being very clear and appropriately expansive about what qualifies as the financing of terrorism is critical. A compliance regime that regulated businesses can meet is critical. Powers to prevent the criminal abuse of our economy and the suffering this causes to Australians, to communities, to our region and, indeed, across the globe are critical. There is much to lose if a crime generates illicit profits. The proceeds are used to destabilise and damage democracies. Governments know that criminals are looking for loopholes. This government will always work to shut them down in a manner that is consistent with the rule of law but with a determination that the Australian people expect and deserve. I commend the bill to the House.”

Australian Labor Party • MP • 09 Sept 2026

“This is about protecting all of us. It's about making sure that the investments people make are safe and that the money that they put into these machines doesn't disappear and wind up in the pocket of someone who seeks to do them or their community harm. We need to get these laws through. We need to send a message to organised crime and to anyone who is considering state sponsored terrorism on Australian soil: there is no money to be made here. We will take the thing that drives you, that financial profit, that gain that you think you're going to get—we are going to take it from you and then we'll come for your freedom as well because, if you're going to pull that kind of rubbish, you belong in jail for a very, very long time.”

Australian Labor Party • MP • 10 Sept 2026

“By targeting money laundering, closing the crypto ATM loophole, modernising our terrorism financing laws and giving AUSTRAC the powers it needs, this bill advances the security and social cohesion of our community. Our message to organised crime syndicates and foreign hostile actors is clear: Australia is closed to illicit enterprise and will deploy the full suite of our regulatory apparatus and security agencies to combat illicit enterprise. I commend this bill to the House.”

Australian Labor Party • MP • 10 Sept 2026

“The reality of the future is that our digital economy is expanding rapidly. More and more people are interacting with our financial systems digitally, and increasingly in complex ways. The demands on our financial regulators will continue to increase as serious and organised crime try to exploit our growth and exploit these networks. Removing unnecessary administrative barriers for regulators and businesses is an important part as we sharpen our tools to crush money laundering and ensure that our financial system frameworks remain responsive and sustainable. This bill seeks to do exactly that and I commend it to the House.”

Australian Labor Party • MP • 09 Sept 2026

“The Australian Institute of Criminology estimates that serious and organised crimes cost Australia up to $82 billion in the 2023-24 period. That is money that is stripped out of our economy and out of the pockets of everyday Australians. The broader anti-money-laundering and counterterrorism-financing reforms are moving the system away from this box ticking and towards outcomes and real risk management. This bill is about protecting people and cutting the fuel line to serious and organised crime. It backs our agencies with modern tools that are precise, proportionate and accountable. It makes it harder for criminals to move money and makes it easier for honest Australians to get on with their lives. I commend the bill to the House.”

Australian Labor Party • MP • 10 Sept 2026

“I want to finish by acknowledging the people who will make these reforms real in practice—the compliance teams, the small business owners, the not-for-profit leaders, the professional advisers and the staff at AUSTRAC and Home Affairs who will support implementation. Their work is often unseen, but it is vital. They are the people who help turn legislation into protection. This bill is sensible, necessary and responsible. It strengthens our defences against criminal abuse of the financial system, modernises our framework for the risks of today and gives honest Australians and the businesses they run the clarity they need to comply with confidence. For those reasons, I commend the bill to the House.”

Australian Labor Party • MP • 10 Sept 2026

“We know that crypto ATMs are a mechanism for such activity. Of course, not every usage of a crypto ATM is linked to money laundering and not every usage of a crypto ATM is linked to criminal activity. But, unfortunately, as we've learned from our law enforcement agencies, a substantial amount of the use of crypto ATMs is linked to generating profits from criminal activity. The Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Amendment Bill addresses the growing risks associated with crypto ATMs and the modern financial crime environment, which can be exploited to commit serious offences and harm Australia's economy and our communities.”

Australian Labor Party • MP • 09 Sept 2026

“Moving to what this bill does, this legislation delivers on reforms the Minister for Home Affairs announced at the National Press Club last October, and it does three things. First, and this is the core of the bill, it gives AUSTRAC's CEO a new power to restrict or prohibit the use of high-risk mechanisms like crypto ATMs, where those mechanisms are being exploited to cause significant harm to the financial system or the Australian community. This isn't a blunt instrument. Before any restriction can be imposed, the AUSTRAC CEO must be satisfied it's necessary in the public interest, weighing the nature of the harm, whether the restrictions will actually address it and whether legitimate alternatives exist for people who rely on that service. There's a mandatory minimum 30-day consultation period with the public and affected agencies before any decision is made, except in urgent circumstances. And, because these restrictions are made by legislative instrument, this parliament retains the power to disallow them if they get the balance wrong. That's the safeguard that matters most to me. A power this significant should never operate beyond the reach of parliamentary scrutiny.”

Australian Labor Party • MP • 10 Sept 2026

“This bill delivers on the reforms announced by the Minister for Home Affairs to give AUSTRAC a new power to tackle emerging threats, including high-risk channels like crypto ATMs. Importantly, this is not a blunt instrument. It is a targeted risk based power that allows AUSTRAC to restrict and prohibit products, services and delivery channels only where there is significant harm added and where it is in the public interest to act. There are safeguards, and AUSTRAC must consider the nature of the harm, whether the proposed action will reduce that harm and whether alternative services remain available. It must also consult industry, government agencies and the public before acting, except in urgent circumstances.”

Australian Labor Party • MP • 10 Sept 2026

“The bill before us addresses these concerns and risk. Public consultation regarding this matter took place in late 2025 and early this year. A consultation paper outlining proposed amendments in schedule 1 and 2 has been released. Further, I understand that AUSTRAC has begun a proactive campaign to inform Australians about these proposed changes. I commend the bill to the House.”

Australian Labor Party • MP • 10 Sept 2026

“Importantly, part of disrupting criminal networks—who are commodity agnostic and don't care whether it's Gucci handbags or guns or drugs or tobacco; they just want to make money—and their trade is to make it harder and harder for them to move money around. The anti-money-laundering and counterterrorism financing laws are a really important part of that. I foreshadow that, in a moment, when we get to the next stage of the bill's passage through the parliament, I will be moving government amendments reflecting the recommendations of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security. I commend the bill to the House.”

Australian Labor Party • MP • 16 Sept 2026

“There are important measures in this bill that the coalition support. This bill will give AUSTRAC greater capacity to act quickly against high-risk financial mechanisms. That is important. Michael Outram, the former head of Australian Border Force—and I want to acknowledge Mr Outram's service to our country. But I also want to acknowledge his thoughtful, evidence based and experienced contributions in a number of speeches recently. The illicit tobacco trade is something about which he's provided some really important contributions. In the context of this bill, some of the activities that it's seeking to address show that some of Mr Outram's comments and contributions to this broader national debate have been important.”

Liberal Party of Australia • MP • 09 Sept 2026