{"id":927973,"date":"2026-10-14T15:30:13","date_gmt":"2026-10-14T15:30:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/927973\/"},"modified":"2026-10-14T15:30:13","modified_gmt":"2026-10-14T15:30:13","slug":"anika-wells-guts-communications-ministers-rule-making-powers-from-labors-digital-duty-of-care-legislation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/927973\/","title":{"rendered":"Anika Wells guts Communications Minister\u2019s rule-making powers from Labor’s Digital Duty of Care legislation"},"content":{"rendered":"

Communications Minister Anika Wells has confirmed the government will strip powers to decide what constitutes new forms of \u201cserious harm\u201d online from its proposed internet laws.<\/p>\n

Ms Wells has conceded the controversial ministerial powers will instead require legislative changes through parliament.<\/p>\n

In an excerpt of her speech to the National Press Club on Thursday, Ms Wells says she has removed the rule-making power from the Digital Duty of Care<\/a> bill.<\/p>\n

It comes following concerns about free speech raised during consultation on the exposure draft.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn response to concerns we heard during the exposure draft consultation\u2026 we have removed the ministerial rule-making power to define new harms,\u201d Ms Wells will say.<\/p>\n

\u201cNew harms can be added by parliament through legislative amendment, with the legislation introduced to parliament (on Thursday morning).\u201d<\/p>\n

News24.com.au previously revealed Ms Wells was preparing to abandon the power<\/a> after the Coalition, Greens and One Nation raised concerns about the draft laws.<\/p>\n

The opposition and crossbench<\/a> warned the proposed legislation had given the Communications Minister too much discretion over harmful content online.<\/p>\n

News24.com.au also recently surveyed voters on the Digital Duty of Care laws<\/a>, with roughly half of respondents uncomfortable about the ministerial powers.<\/p>\n

Twenty per cent said there was \u201ctoo much power with the Minister for Communications to determine what is harmful content\u201d.<\/p>\n

Another 28 per cent said the law was needed but the Communications Minister should not have that power.<\/p>\n

By comparison, 42 per cent backed the proposition that \u201cthe law is needed to make sure there is no harmful content online\u201d, while 10 per cent did not have a view.<\/p>\n

Ms Wells had previously acknowledged that under the proposed laws<\/a>, she would have ultimately determined what constituted a new serious harm.<\/p>\n

The revised approach will instead require government to introduce legislation to parliament whenever it seeks to add new categories of harm.<\/p>\n

\"Anika<\/p>\n

In her National Press Club address, Ms Wells will frame the legislation as a question of whether major technology companies were acting in the interests of families and kids.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo you really think that Big Tech is on the side of worried parents and vulnerable kids\u2026 or are they on the side of their shareholders?\u201d she will say.<\/p>\n

Ms Wells argues the online services should face basic safety standards comparable to those imposed on other industries.<\/p>\n

\u201cAustralia\u2019s Digital Duty of Care will set basic safety standards for the online services we use every day, just like we have in every other industry,\u201d she will say.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe must shift the burden from the shoulders of victims to the companies that are creating the environments where harms occur.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe core of the duty is to provide a safe online environment, where all Australians are protected from seriously harmful and illegal content.\u201d<\/p>\n

She says under-18s will receive additional protections against content and features deemed harmful to young people.<\/p>\n

These include material promoting eating disorders, glorifying crime or dangerous stunts, pornography, sexist content and abuse or bullying.<\/p>\n

The legislation also includes provisions intended to give social media users greater control over what appears in their feeds.<\/p>\n

Under the \u201cMy Feed, My Way\u201d proposal, social media platforms will have to provide social media users power to opt in or out of the algorithm.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf someone wants their feed filled with friends and creators they follow, the social media platforms must give them that choice,\u201d Ms Wells said.<\/p>\n

The Communications Minister also confirmed the final bill would include an exemption for professional news material to report on prohibited content.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Communications Minister Anika Wells has confirmed the government will strip powers to decide what constitutes new forms of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":927974,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[495147,495142,460886,20377,330099,495115,393590,495100,439848,495149,495120,16169,447803,466425,474017,123796,495139,64,8931,63,36974,495130,10826,32140,495138,460881,460888,32092,495124,10829,191711,346858,88096,56957,40490,1791,495095,219372,460837,472233,51465,380864,495106,495126,1379,13326,495131,495127,3786,494002,4271,99203,495132,419303,495150,49277,495151,495112,422301,495108,495146,1788,25213,495123,495133,393447,12653,50029,13053,459698,495110,495117,9388,460897,495102,495121,44,428705,495144,60504,474623,9801,74853,6091,29701,495122,495101,388080,104765,37542,388592,294221,495154,495104,378645,43173,212218,495105,495153,495098,486953,383504,411350,161703,495141,431179,495137,455593,460850,495145,495152,495125,460853,495118,423267,23023,400596,126024,436858,384878,495109,495113,376459,495096,495136,495107,376521,495140,495099,495148,495114,495111,495103,386778,495143,495129,495135,476849,9357,495097,495128,238136,195690,40661,241840,495116,170730,19542,495134,495119,28539],"class_list":["post-927973","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-australia","tag-s-digital-duty","tag-s-rule-making-powers","tag-s-social-media-crackdown","tag-20377","tag-330099","tag-a-new-serious-harm","tag-a-question","tag-a-safe-online-environment","tag-a-view","tag-abuse-or-bullying","tag-additional-protections","tag-albanese-government","tag-all-australians","tag-an-excerpt","tag-an-exemption","tag-anika-wells","tag-another-28","tag-au","tag-auspol","tag-australia","tag-australian-politics","tag-basic-safety-standards","tag-big-tech","tag-care","tag-care-bill","tag-care-laws","tag-care-legislation","tag-cent","tag-communication-minister","tag-communications","tag-communications-minister","tag-communications-minister-anika-wells","tag-comparison","tag-concerns","tag-consultation","tag-content","tag-controversial-digital-duty","tag-dangerous-stunts","tag-digital-duty","tag-digital-duty-of-care","tag-eating-disorders","tag-every-day","tag-every-other-industry","tag-families-and-kids","tag-features","tag-free-speech","tag-friends-and-creators","tag-glorifying-crime","tag-government","tag-greater-control","tag-greens","tag-harm","tag-harmful-and-illegal-content","tag-harmful-content","tag-harmful-content-online","tag-harms","tag-her-extraordinary-powers","tag-her-national-press-club-address","tag-her-speech","tag-internet-laws","tag-its-proposed-internet-laws","tag-labor","tag-legislation","tag-legislative-amendment","tag-legislative-changes","tag-major-technology-companies","tag-material","tag-minister","tag-morning","tag-ms-wells","tag-my-way-proposal","tag-n24p-digdutyofcare-opinione-21092026","tag-national-press-club","tag-new-categories","tag-new-forms","tag-new-harms","tag-news","tag-news24-com-au","tag-no-harmful-content-online","tag-one-nation","tag-other-industries","tag-parliament","tag-pornography","tag-power","tag-powers","tag-professional-news-material","tag-prohibited-content","tag-provisions","tag-respondents","tag-response","tag-roughly","tag-serious-harm","tag-sexist-content","tag-sexist-content-and","tag-snapp-politics-generic","tag-social-media-platforms","tag-social-media-users","tag-that-choice","tag-that-power","tag-the-my-feed","tag-the-algorithm","tag-the-authority","tag-the-burden","tag-the-coalition","tag-the-communications-minister","tag-the-companies","tag-the-controversial-ministerial-powers","tag-the-core","tag-the-digital-duty","tag-the-draft-laws","tag-the-duty","tag-the-environments","tag-the-exposure-draft","tag-the-exposure-draft-consultation","tag-the-final-bill","tag-the-government","tag-the-interests","tag-the-law","tag-the-legislation","tag-the-minister","tag-the-ministerial-powers","tag-the-ministerial-rule-making-power","tag-the-national-press-club","tag-the-new-revised-approach","tag-the-online-services","tag-the-opposition-and-crossbench","tag-the-power","tag-the-proposed-laws","tag-the-proposed-legislation","tag-the-proposition","tag-the-revised-approach","tag-the-rule-making-power","tag-the-shoulders","tag-the-side","tag-the-social-media-platforms","tag-their-feed","tag-their-feeds","tag-their-shareholders","tag-thursday","tag-too-much-discretion","tag-too-much-power","tag-twenty","tag-under-18s","tag-victims","tag-voters","tag-vulnerable-kids","tag-wells","tag-white-house","tag-white-house-escalates","tag-worried-parents","tag-young-people"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/927973","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddab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