False start for Labor's internet filtering trials

Senator the Hon Nick Minchin
Shadow Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy (to 8 December 2009)
Leader of the Opposition in the Senate

Despite ‘announcing’ the names of likely participants in trials of Labor’s deeply unpopular mandatory internet filtering proposal, Communications Minister Stephen Conroy has left many questions unanswered, Shadow Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy Senator Nick Minchin said.

“Commencement dates for these trials have not even been confirmed and the Minister advises that filtering equipment has yet to be obtained and installed, even though these trials were scheduled to begin before 24 December last year,” Senator Minchin said.

“It is also extremely puzzling why two of the nation’s three largest ISPs, Optus and iiNet have not been included in the first phase of these trials, despite expressing a willingness to participate,” Senator Minchin said.

“Australia’s largest ISP Telstra Bigpond has refused to participate and without the ‘big three’, it is difficult to see how these trials could be in any way credible.

“The Opposition has consulted widely on Labor’s deeply unpopular mandatory filtering proposal and based on all the current information we have grave reservations.

“The onus is squarely on Senator Conroy to provide irrefutable evidence of how this can possibly work, without adversely affecting all law-abiding internet users,” Senator Minchin said.

“We continue to monitor the progress of these trials extremely closely and I again call on the Minister to commit to the independent auditing of any results.

“You would suspect that these trials would need to include Australia’s biggest ISPs in terms of market share, as well as large numbers of willing customers to produce reliable data,” Senator Minchin said.

“The Minister also needs to explain what his measures of success will be for these trials and outline how they will be conducted and what filtering technologies will be utilised.

“By announcing some names and no other details, these trials seem no closer to commencing, and this was merely a stunt designed to buy the Minister some extra time,” Senator Minchin said.

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