Zaneta Mascarenhas (Swan, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Thanks to the member for Bruce for his previous comments, and I note that they were measured comments. TikTok is a fascinating platform, but it can also be quite scary. It can be used for joy and for making creative content, but there's also a very dark side to it as well—algorithms that promote behaviours such as suicidal tendencies or eating disorders.

I see social media as being part of different generations' normal bread and butter. I feel like I come from the generation of Facebook, whereas the generation younger than me uses Instagram and then the next generation uses TikTok, but the platforms that kids are using in school are things like BeReal, and I know that there are lots of people who are members of this place who use different platforms.

The thing I will point out is that we are talking about two grave matters: national security and censorship, and it is important that we treat these topics carefully and tread carefully. I note that the Labor Party and the coalition have a proud history of bipartisanship on matters of national security and I point to the recent success of the AUKUS deal. We should be reluctant to use these matters for political pointscoring and we should never be flippant about censorship.

This is a unique challenge, and our response to this cannot be developed overnight. There is a lot of uneasiness in the community, including in Swan, about the collection of data by social media giants and how they use it. It's something that a lot of my constituents have spoken to me about. When there's a national security concern about what data is collected and how it could be used against Australia, it's important that we think about our response. We can't rush into this; nor can we act on emotions.

The Department of Home Affairs has provided its report on the security risks associated with this to the Minister for Home Affairs, and the minister is working through her considered response. Public information will be provided in due course. The review itself is classified and will not be made public, which is typical for matters of national security and is appropriate.

Labor, as always, has a plan, and we are prioritising our national security. Our October budget saw $211 billion committed to Australia's Defence Force over the forward estimates. We're investing in Australia's cyberwarfare capabilities, with $8.8 billion committed to the Australian Signals Directorate over the forward estimates.

It's also important to note that TikTok is not a new social media platform, and the concerns around TikTok aren't new. In fact, they've been public since it was launched in 2016. I note that the Liberal Party is on TikTok and has about 14,600 followers. I know that TikTok followers are not a metric that matters on election day, but I do note that Labor has 88,900 followers. I'm certain that the member for Fisher's motive for this motion does not relate to the fact that Labor has six times more followers on TikTok, but I will note the irony of the opposition saying it should be banned, yet the Liberal TikTok account last posted three days ago. And my 'zillennial' team member, Linda Pickering, also pointed out that it wasn't a very good TikTok! That last comment is in jest. But, in all seriousness, the Albanese Labor government is reviewing the situation, and I hope that the member for Fisher pursued this matter with his colleagues when they were in government.

There is nothing new about the threats posed by foreign actors on social media. We saw the weaponisation of Facebook during the 2016 US presidential election by foreign actors and those wishing to stoke disunity. The Albanese Labor government is working hard to identify, investigate and disrupt acts of foreign interference, including those on social media, as well as to build Australia's resilience to this threat. We should look at the threats of social media and foreign interference broadly, without focusing on just one platform; otherwise we may create blind spots in our defence. It's important that we look at the full suite of apps that are available and make sure we're looking at all of the risks.

Any allegation of foreign interference—whether that's China, Iran, Russia et cetera—is serious, and I have full faith that our intelligence agencies will pursue these matters without fear or prejudice. I will say that our national unity increases our national resilience against foreign interference efforts, so I think about the ways that we can unite people, build faith and restore democracy.

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