Colin Boyce (Flynn, Liberal National Party) Share this | Hansard source

Labor's proposed Communications Legislation Amendment (Combatting Misinformation and Disinformation) Bill 2023 is deeply flawed. The bill gives the regulator, the Australian Communications and Media Authority, very substantial powers. The ACMA's key power under the legislation is the ability to impose massive fines on digital platforms if it thinks that they are not doing enough to stop misinformation or disinformation.

The definition of misinformation is so broad that it could capture many statements made by Australians in the context of political debate. Authorised content by the Albanese government cannot be misinformation, but criticisms of the Albanese government, made by ordinary Australians, can be misinformation. Nothing an academic says can be misinformation, but statements made by somebody disagreeing with an academic can be misinformation. Good faith statements made by entertainers cannot be misinformation, but good faith statements made by ordinary Australians on political matters can be misinformation. Journalists commenting on their personal digital platforms could have their content removed as misinformation. If the minister has a favoured digital platform, then that platform could be entirely removed from the application of misinformation laws.

Just recently, I posted a video on my Facebook page of electric vehicles exploding on a highway overseas, exposing the risk of lithium batteries. Within 10 minutes of it being posted, Facebook took it down and claimed it was false information. When I clicked on the source of the fact check, it was an article written in a different language. What was the ACMA's response when I wrote to them about this specific scenario? Very little—even saying, 'Digital platform services are responsible for the content of their service and for minimising disinformation and misinformation while balancing freedom of expression.' So what exactly does that mean?

As the federal member for Flynn, I know that freedom of speech and expression are fundamental principles in a democratic society. Changes to the laws in this area involve a complex area of policy, and overreach by the Albanese government must be avoided. The public will want to know exactly who decides whether content is misinformation or disinformation.

I would like to thank the many constituents who've contacted me about Labor's proposed misinformation bill and their concerns about what changes this will mean for the freedom of speech. Under the planned legislation, there would be one rule for government MPs and another for everyday Australians who just want to have their say, including the members of the opposition. I've been raising this issue with my colleagues, and we have agreed that this is a bad bill which should be torn up and thrown in the bin. I commend the member for Banks for raising this private member's motion. Freedom of speech is a fundamental thing in our democracy, and the coalition will always fight for it. This bill was clearly dreamed up in Canberra, but it would have terrible impacts on freedom of speech in local communities around Australia.

This is not a Left versus Right issue. Criticism has come from all corners: from leading legal bodies to the Human Rights Commission, civil libertarian groups and even the media union. In the meantime, we have already seen the Labor Party freely use the term 'misinformation' to try and silence those who do not want to share their political views. We know that the government has been overwhelmed by a large number of submissions on this bill. They are cynically delaying the releasing of them publicly to a timing of their choosing.

The significant penalties associated with this legislation potentially place substantial power in the hands of government officials. The coalition will engage with stakeholders and carefully examine the proposed legislation.

Whether you are conservative, on the left wing, or somewhere in between, you should be concerned about this bill. It directly involves the government in political communication. It gives immense powers to ACMA. It creates huge financial incentives for tech platforms to remove statements made by Australians, even if they were made in good faith. The government has badly misfired on this issue. I encourage everyone concerned about this legislation to sign up for the Bin the Bill website, to counter Labor's misinformation bill. Our primary message to Australians is that they have the right to freedom of speech. This is a bad law. It must be stopped. Bin the bill.

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