Today's inquiry into the Misinformation and Disinformation Bill (MAD) has been overtaken by last week's election in the United States. Vice President-elect JD Vance stated that the Trump administration would oppose any attempt to censor social media platforms. Since most of the platforms covered by this Bill are U.S. based companies, it is now likely that the bill is unenforceable.
CitizenGo testified that the exemption for government messaging from misinformation laws is "insane," citing some of the worst cases of health misinformation during COVID-19.
I also inquired about the origin of the Bill, which was the Liberal Party under Prime Minister Morrison. I observed that Opposition Leader Peter Dutton did not oppose the Bill in the lower house; Hansard clearly records that he abstained from the vote. While the committee objected to this, the assertion that Dutton voted against the bill is incorrect—he abstained.
It's interesting that something as basic as how a person voted has become a point of contention, which serves as a perfect example of the problems with misinformation laws.