Mark Coulton (Parkes, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On 22 February 2014, Charlotte Dawson took her own life. The circumstances surrounding her death are not yet known; however, it was publicly known that Charlotte had a long battle with depression and bullying. Her death has brought to light the serious nature of intimidation and bullying that can take place on the internet.

A couple of my constituents, Emma Mastronardi and Lara Harwood, were so concerned and so upset about the circumstances of Charlotte Dawson's death that they started an online petition. As we know in this place, for petitions to be presented to parliament they have to actually have signatures and online petitions do not have that avenue. But this petition cannot be ignored. It currently has 204,275 signatures on it. In an attempt to bring this situation to light, Emma and Lara created the petition after Charlotte took her life. They are calling for 'Charlotte's law'; they are asking for the Australian and state governments to introduce cyberbullying laws to tackle serious online abuse not just for kids but for adults too. The police also need the resources to be able to enforce them and act against those who relentlessly harass others online.

This government has done a lot about cyberbullying, under the leadership of the member for Bradfield, and while a lot of this has been focused on younger people, Charlotte Dawson's death highlights that it is a serious problem for adults as well. Social media sites do need to act to address bullying and trials on social media and to work with authorities. Emma and Lara have pointed out that social media sites like Twitter can be more proactive about addressing this serious issue. Emma and Lara also have promoted the use of support services like Lifeline, which is 131114, or the Kids Helpline, 1800551800. In conclusion, I would like to congratulate Emma Mastronardi and Lara Harwood for pursuing this serious issue. Charlotte was a personal acquaintance and friend of Emma Mastronardi. I support her and Lara in their endeavours and I note that we should be acting on this.

Natasha Griggs (Solomon, Country Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In accordance with standing order 193 the time for constituency statements has concluded.