Topics: AI regulation and data centres, online safety, ATO credit card ban
Alex Thomas: We’re joined here in the studio by Shadow Communications Minister, Sarah Henderson. Thanks so much for your time on News 24 this morning, Sarah. What do you make of those ideas? There is a feeling, I guess, and almost a cross-party one, that AI needs to be checked in some way. What about plans to have a sort of safety mechanism similar to other industries?
Senator Henderson: Well, Alex, good morning. Great to join you. I think that is very important but as we’ve seen from the Albanese government, they are completely all over the shop. They are scrambling for a headline. We have called on the government to do a deal with the United States so that we are at the front of the queue when it comes to investing in our data centres here in Australia, but within proper guard rails. And we saw in Sydney, of course, where I’m part of a Senate inquiry into data centres, that one company wanted to build a data centre within 16 metres of a person’s home. That was completely unacceptable. I spoke out very strongly about that. Of course, there were no planning regulations in New South Wales to stop that. But of course, now that particular proposal has been withdrawn. So the government is talking big on the headlines, deflecting from the way that the economy is going pear-shaped, but very little substance.
Alex Thomas: Do you think that’s the connection there? That there is a lot of pressure on the government to grow the economy in the right way, to avoid those inflationary pressures, to improve productivity, and that AI is seen as a bit of a golden goose, and maybe there’s a rush to adopt it?
Senator Henderson: There’s a lot of pressure on the government because the economy is going so badly. We are running off a cliff. The highest government spending in 40 years outside the pandemic. Productivity is crashing. Of course, we have seen the pressures on households, a 44 per cent increase in gas alone under the Albanese government. 1.5 million migrants coming to this country since the government was elected. This really is a car crash of a government. They are looking for a headline. They’re looking to try and deflect but again, on AI, I think they’re failing.
And let me just give you an example, we have, of course, the digital duty of care laws, which are a fundamental assault on free speech. But they can’t even get the basics right with safety. They’ve actually stripped out a range of mandatory codes and standards in the existing Online Safety Act, which actually put children, particularly, under threat of safety because they are pulling back the legislation in a way that’s completely irresponsible. So this government cannot get anything right. And look at the chaos now for small businesses. They won’t even stand up to the ATO after that disgraceful decision in relation to not processing credit card payments.
Alex Thomas: Yeah. Well, let’s maybe get onto that a bit further. But on the point of safety of children online, I mean, clearly there’s this world-leading social media ban in place. Should it perhaps be extended to AI? We’ve seen some new research from Adelaide University that one in three kids who have been sexually victimised. We know that there are sort of fake nudes doing the rounds amongst some teenagers, that those one in three children who feel sexually victimised online are turning to AI chatbots for advice or even some help. So presumably there could be the need for regulation in that sphere?
Senator Henderson: Look, Alex, there is no doubt that we must do much more to hold big tech to account and to ensure that children are safer online. As I’ve mentioned, the government is removing the mandatory codes and standards. So, for instance, currently, online platforms are required to detect and prevent child sexual abuse material. That’s a specific prescriptive code that is being stripped out of the Online Safety Act, which is a complete and utter shock. That’s why I’m saying that the the laws that are being proposed by the government are weaker. We need to do much more, and that is why we have pushed so hard for parental safety tools, so that parents, like government departments and corporations, can use those safety tools to ensure that the harm never reaches the phone, including in relation to AI chatbots. So, we put up that amendment in the Parliament. Labor and the Greens voted against parental safety tools, and then the Prime Minister, in the biggest act of hypocrisy, goes to Apple and talks about parental safety tools in the United States after voting against our measure, so the government is all over the shop. As I say, the economy is imploding. More and more businesses are losing confidence in this government, along with all Australians. And when it comes to online safety, we are also seeing the government getting that all wrong.
Alex Thomas: And briefly, an apology to our viewers if you can hear a fire alarm going off in the background, it is testing time here. But briefly, you did mention the row over the ATO refusing to accept credit card payments because of the ban on surcharges. How big an issue will this be when Parliament resumes on Monday?
Senator Henderson: This is going to be an enormous issue. The damage that this is going to do to small business if this is implemented. The Prime Minister needs to say this is not happening. It shows how weak he is. There is an uproar across this country. The ATO, they’ve obviously got no idea how small businesses work. They depend on that 55 days of credit to operate their cash flow, run their business, and of course, this Prime Minister is doing nothing. He needs to fix this and he needs to fix it immediately.
Alex Thomas: Okay, Sarah Henderson, thank you very much.
Senator Henderson: Thanks Alex.