Bill to fine companies for failing to curb online misinformation scrapped
Australia's Minister for Communications Michelle Rowland has revealed that a proposed amendment to the Communications Act on 'Combating Misinformation and Disinformation' that would have imposed fines of up to 5% of global turnover on social media companies if they failed to prevent the spread of misinformation and disinformation on the internet has been scrapped. This bill was an issue that Minister Rowland had been working on for over a year, but it was opposed by the majority conservative coalition and the third-party Greens in the Senate, leaving no prospect of it being passed.
Communications Legislation Amendment (Combatting Misinformation and Disinformation) Bill 2024 | Ministers for the Department of Infrastructure
Albanese government abandons controversial misinformation bill amid widespread opposition | Sky News Australia
Australia dumps plan for fines for social media giants enabling misinformation | Reuters
Crushing blow for Anthony Albanese as hugely controversial misinformation bill is SCRAPPED | Daily Mail Online
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14118879/misinformation-bill-scrapped-Anthony-Albanese.html
The Communications Act Amendment Bill was submitted by the Labor government of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, citing the spread of harmful misinformation and disinformation online and the fact that 80% of the public want action. It is at the heart of Labor's policy agenda, and discussions have been underway for over a year under the leadership of Communications Minister Rowland. When it was first submitted in 2023, it was criticized for giving regulators too much power, leading to the creation of this new bill.
Government to introduce legislation to combat seriously harmful misinformation and disinformation | Ministers for the Department of Infrastructure
https://minister.infrastructure.gov.au/rowland/media-release/government-introduce-legislation-combat-seriously-harmful-misinformation-and-disinformation
The bill requires companies that operate social media and other platforms to detect and remove or penalize misinformation, and if they fail to curb the spread of information, they could be fined up to 5% of their annual turnover.
Although the bill passed the House of Commons, where the ruling Labour Party holds a majority of 78 of the 151 seats, Labour only has 26 of the 76 seats in the Senate, and the Conservative Coalition (31 seats), the Greens (11 seats), and eight independents all opposed the bill.
For example, independent Senator David Pocock has criticised the bill as 'anti-free speech' and 'state censorship'.
Mis & Dis Information Bill - my position. - YouTube
In response to this situation, Communications Minister Rowland acknowledged that 'there was no path forward for the bill to become law,' and the proposed amendments to the Communications Act were scrapped.
Opposition to the bill has come not only from opposition lawmakers but also from experts. Speaking to local news station Sky News, lawyer Justin Quill said, 'This is an extraordinary attempt by the government to control speech in the first place,' and added, 'It's extraordinary that something like this was even considered, and even more extraordinary that it was seriously introduced as a bill.'
Incidentally, Al-Bazinie's government is also pushing a bill to ban the use of social media by anyone under the age of 16.
Australia is expected to ban social networking sites for people under 16 - GIGAZINE
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