Senate Environment and Communications References Committee (part 1 of 2) — hearing of 13 October 2025: transcript & video · Polyfact

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Senate Environment and Communications References Committee (part 1 of 2)

12 October 2025

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Contents updated on 22 Oct 2026

The Chair formally opens the Senate committee hearing on the Internet Search Engine Services Online Safety Code and SMMA, sets out procedural rules, and takes opening statements from Google, YouTube and Microsoft outlining their services, economic role and high-level concerns about a social media minimum age. Witnesses position YouTube as distinct from social media and describe existing child-safety tools and regulatory engagement in Australia.

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Opening of hearing and big tech opening statements

12:43

Hearing opens — scope and witness introductions

12:43

Google, YouTube and Microsoft — opening statements

16:42

Search platforms on youth safety tools, harms metrics and SMMA/search code

22:49

Deputy Chair Q&A — existing youth safety tools and ‘good’ legislation

22:49

Measuring online harm — transparency metrics and VVR

28:38

Cadell — lobbying, TikTok, and Labor’s YouTube exemption letter

31:16

Fragmented age-assurance and overlapping regimes

34:12

VPNs, logged-out use and limits of account-based protections

38:45

Google’s position on the Search Code and SMMA; child advertising rules

45:15

Senators’ scrutiny of SMMA impacts, algorithms and data practices

54:10

Shoebridge — loss of protections under SMMA and impact on teen creators

54:10

Logged-out search and age-gates at content level

01:01:36

Algorithms vs bans — willingness to regulate recommendation systems

01:03:25

Pocock — data collection on minors, recommendations and deletion

01:08:20

Henderson — TikTok/Meta absence and YouTube SMMA exemption dispute

01:13:47

SHY — US lobbying, AI text and data mining, and LinkedIn/Xbox as social media

01:25:31

Committee rebuke of big tech absences and close of first panel

01:34:56

Yahoo panel — role, regulatory scope and homepage content

01:51:50

Yahoo — search partnership with Bing and age-assurance approach

01:51:50

Yahoo Q&A — complaints, harm mitigation and homepage content concerns

02:02:00

Child safety and youth sector — risks of SMMA and preferred reforms

02:19:56

Child safety experts — Project Rockit, Headspace and Child Rights Task Force

02:19:56

Impacts of SMMA on youth connection, mental health and education

02:31:41

Youth sector on implementation gaps and resourcing needs

03:06:47

Digital duty of care and alternatives to access bans

03:16:32

Youth voices on SMMA, algorithms and regional/multicultural impacts

03:20:38

Youth perspectives — Six News, YACVic and CMY on SMMA

03:20:38

Algorithms, evaluation and regional/multicultural impacts

03:32:55

Digital rights and technical alternatives to bans and mass age verification

04:58:05

Digital Rights Watch & EFA — privacy critique of SMMA and search code

04:58:05

Questioning age verification, data minimisation and harmful content control

05:06:55

Coria — device-level safety, enterprise controls and empowering parents

05:45:49

Senate Environment and Communications References Committee (part 1 of 2)

12 October 2025

Senate Environment and Communications References Committee Mon, 13 Oct 2025 Australian Parliament

12:32 - 12:37

Speaker 144

Thanks to our witnesses who are online there. We appreciate you being with us today.

12:38 - 12:42

Speaker 70

Hand side ready. Great. Thank you.

12:43 - 13:46

Speaker 7

I would declare open this hearing of the senate environment and communications references committee into Internet search engine services online safety code. I begin by acknowledging the traditional custodians of the land on which we meet and pay my respects to their elders past and present. I extend that respect to aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples here today. The committee will be conducting today's hearing via video conference and in person. These public proceedings being video, being video livestreamed, and, in person.

And they're being livestreamed via the parliament's website, and a hand saned transcript is being made. I remind all witnesses that in giving evidence to the committee, they are protected by parliamentary privilege. It is unlawful for anyone to threaten or disadvantage a witness on account of evidence given to a committee, and such action may be treated by the senate as contempt. It is also a contempt to give false or misleading evidence. Witnesses have the right to to request to be heard in camera.

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