Sportsbet was invited to a Labor party fundraising dinner with an Albanese government minister earlier this week, despite bipartisan calls for the party to ignore lobbying from the wagering industry and introduce tougher regulation.

A Sportsbet employee was among a small group of donors who attended the “boardroom dinner” with the minister for regional development, Kristy McBain, on Tuesday night. The dinner was organised by Labor’s fundraising vehicle.

Earlier in the day, four crossbench MPs held a press conference in parliament house urging the federal government to act on the two-year-old recommendations of an inquiry led by late Labor MP Peta Murphy, which included a comprehensive ban on gambling ads.

Invitations to the event seen by Guardian Australia show tickets to the 90 min

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