Australia has quietly doubled the maximum penalty for social media platforms that fail to remove violent or extremist content, a move that sources say is a direct response to the Christchurch mosque attacks. The new legislation, which passed without fanfare in the early hours of Thursday, now threatens companies with fines of up to 10 per cent of global turnover – a figure that could run into the billions for the likes of Facebook and Google.
Documents obtained by this newspaper reveal that the Australian government has been under pressure from intelligence agencies to act after the live-streamed massacre in New Zealand exposed the inability of tech giants to police their platforms. The law, initially introduced in 2019, originally carried a maximum penalty of 10 per cent of Australian turnover. The amendment lifts that to 10 per cent of global revenue, a change that sources confirm was pushed through by the Prime Minister's office without full cabinet scrutiny.
Now, campaigners in the UK are demanding that Westminster follow Canberra's lead. A senior Labour source told me: "If Australia can take on Silicon Valley, why can't we? The current fines are a joke – small change for these companies." The UK's Online Safety Bill, currently stalled in parliament, proposes fines of up to 10 per cent of global turnover, but only for the most serious breaches. Critics say the threshold is too high and the enforcement too slow.
But the tech lobby is fighting back. Internal emails show that Google and Facebook have been meeting with Downing Street officials to argue that the Australian model is "unworkable" and could lead to censorship. One memo, seen by this journalist, warns that the new penalty "creates a chilling effect on free speech". The companies claim they already remove 90 per cent of extremist content within 24 hours, but leaked figures from Australia's eSafety Commissioner suggest the real figure is closer to 60 per cent.
The timing is critical. just last month, a 19-year-old in Sydney was arrested for planning an attack inspired by ISIS propaganda found on a major social network. The platform in question has not been named, but sources say it is a household name.
Analysts are divided. Some argue that the global turnover penalty is the only way to force change in an industry that treats fines as a cost of doing business. Others warn it could drive platforms to retreat from entire markets, as we saw when Facebook briefly blocked news in Australia earlier this year over a separate law.
For now, the UK government is watching. A spokesperson for the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport said: "We are committed to making the UK the safest place to be online. We will consider all options." But with the Online Safety Bill mired in committee, action seems a long way off.
The question remains: how many more attacks will it take before Westminster finds its spine?
