Elizabeth Watson-Brown (Ryan, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Australian Greens will not oppose the passage of the Communications Legislation Amendment (Prominence and Anti-siphoning) Bill 2023 through the House. However, we will reserve our position for the Senate, given the ongoing Senate inquiry.

The recent news that Meta will no longer be entering into commercial deals with news organisations is a huge blow to public interest journalism in this country. A big tech company like Meta cannot be allowed to bully users, journalists and democratically elected governments by deciding which laws of the land they will choose to comply with. Meta should have to follow the rules that everyone else does. The government should move to designate Meta under the News Media Bargaining Code. The News Media Bargaining Code was legislated to ensure that platforms like Facebook are not able to profit of the sharing of news content without paying a fair price for it.

We need strong regulation of big tech companies that are making huge profits and have a massive influence on our democracy. It's absolutely critical that we have a diverse spread of media across Australia that's feasibly accessible to everyone. We need better protections in Australia for the local screen industries, to protect our intellectual property, to protect our workers and to keep Australian media competitive. Streaming giants like Netflix, Disney, Amazon and Stan—who, by the way, which make millions off of Australian households per year—should reinvest, at the very least, 20 per cent of their Australian earnings back into local screen industries to create local content.

The Netflix CEO, Greg Peters, is on $40 million. Disney CEO Bob Iger is on $30 million. The Stan CEO is on $10 million. I think these companies can afford to be paying back into our local industries. It's absolutely crucial that all Australians see stories that reflect their experiences on their screens, especially our children.

I couldn't be more proud that the amazing Bluey, now beloved across the world, was created in my electorate of Ryan. If you are a parent, or indeed a grandparent, you'll be very familiar with the scenes and environments from that show that are completely recognisable to wee locals: the beautiful Queenslander houses, the poinciana and jacaranda trees and Hammerbarn—that's our Hammerbarn from Keperra.

The government should encourage local content by adopting measures that empower local Australian businesses to retain significant intellectual property rights and licencing arrangements, breaking up the mega media conglomerates that hold so much power in our media landscape. There's clearly urgent reform needed in this ever-changing digital age, and the government must make sure that it listens and gives voice to all stakeholders, not just its wealthy mates. We need fewer Rupert Murdochs and more independent and local media. Thank you.

Debate interrupted.