Anne Webster (Mallee, National Party, Shadow Minister for Regional Development, Local Government and Territories) Share this | Hansard source

I rise as the first shadow minister for regional communications in Australia—yet another principled position the Nationals took to ensure that, in the 21st century, there is a continuous focus on regional connectivity. This bill mandates the production of Australian content, and nothing is more Australian than regional Australia. From The Flying Doctors, filmed in my electorate of Mallee at Minyip, to Mad Max, Crocodile Dundee and The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, the star of the show has been the people and the landscapes of regional Australia. As we see the capital cities grow at breakneck pace under Labor governments—federal and state—I come to this debate with an unashamed and strong emphasis on regional Australians. That is why—and I foreshadow—I will be moving an amendment to ensure transparency on how much of the Australian production proposed through this bill will actually occur in regional Australia.

Let's remember the regulatory space we have here. Our media regulations were made during the 20th century of television towers and antennas on roofs. Now, builders do not even put antennas on house builds. This is the 21st century, and regulation has not caught up to the reality where many Australians—if not the majority—are digesting the bulk of their news and entertainment over the internet through the NBN broadband internet, 5G, 4G or whatever else they use. Critically, regulation hasn't caught up to the fact that we have strictly regulated the Australian broadcasters while regulation does not effectively touch the international broadcasters such as those this bill seeks to regulate. Australia's media is not a free market. This is a failed market, and the Nationals know about interventions in market failure situations all too well, as we see the need for it time and time again in regional Australia.

Free-to-air television broadcasters face many barriers. There are laws and rules that apply to our commercial broadcasters that do not apply to offshore based, streaming, video-on-demand providers. SBODs, or streamers, are free to use the digital airwaves—so to speak—as they wish with no barriers. The bill is an opening step in changing that. How can we, Australian parliamentarians, in good conscience say to Australian broadcasters, 'We'll keep you under red tape but not apply the same or similar red tape to others who broadcast in Australia'? These international broadcasters are swallowing up advertising revenue that keeps Australian broadcasters on air. For example, international broadcasters can run gambling advertising that Australian broadcasters cannot, particularly at times of match play.

As I said earlier, we Nationals know all too well about market failure and the need for government to intervene, as we see it all too often in regional Australia. I publicly stated in August that we have a declining regional media and lack of journalists. I don't have one single television journalist based in Mallee—which, I might remind viewers, is Victoria's largest land electorate, a third the size of Victoria. We need to see ourselves on screen and in our news services, but in streaming services as well. Of course, the investment this bill refers to is not for news or sport but for Australian creative content, including documentaries and movies. Having said that, I give a shout-out to the WIN network who, as of Monday this week, resumed news bulletins in Sunraysia, my hometown of Mildura and in Griffith in the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area. It is wonderful to see ourselves on TV news again.

I spoke on WIN News across regional Australia last night, including—I am excited to say again—in Mildura, about streaming platforms, how they minimise their tax in Australia and how commercial broadcasters are not on a level playing field. I'll repeat what I said in August 2024 for the benefit of the House. I haven't had time to update the figures, but this is the tilted playing field we operate in—this blurred online media market space. Apple, who have streaming platform Apple TV, who earned $9.3 billion on Australian shores in the most recent reporting year I have to hand, paid just $137.3 million in tax, which was only 1.5 per cent of their Australian revenues. In 2018, Netflix reportedly had an effective tax rate of 0.05 per cent in Australia, despite $1 billion in revenue, and paid just $342,000 in tax. That figure rose to $868,000 in 2022 but is still far short of its revenue and impact on Australian society.

Netflix's tax avoidance smarts aren't limited to Australia. In the USA, during the life of the Trump administration, Netflix paid US$81 million in corporate tax, despite earning $10.5 billion over that period. We've seen the news in the last 24 hours of US officials warning the Commonwealth we could be hit with more tariffs if we keep pushing on the media bargaining incentive—what was the media bargaining code under the coalition government—on the social media bans for under 16s, on this initiative to require Australian content and on more. As elected representatives of Australians as the Australian parliament, it is now our sovereign right and duty to act in the national interest.

Let me tell you a few Australian stories streaming platforms might want to look into to fill their Australian content quotas. Regions are out of sight, out of mind for the Albanese Labor government. The radical pursuit of net zero at all costs railroading regional communities—Victorian Labor government said, without offshore wind, 70 per cent of Victorian farmland would be needed. Can you imagine the documentary—the headline? It would play potentially all over the world—railroading of farmers without social licence.

On Monday 24 November, the Victorian government issued a draft renewable energy zone order for five onshore renewable energy zones, including several in my electorate. What we know is that, under Victorian Labor, the word 'draft' actually means 'final'. Even though there is apparently a consultation until February, we know that, in Victoria, it means nothing. VicGrid attempted, earlier this month, to access properties at Greens Creek and Bunguluke, in my electorate, using powers the Victorian Labor government energy minister Lily D'Ambrosio gave them. Farmers are starting harvest very shortly. They don't have time to be protesting, but they are because this means so much to them—farmers like Rod Reading and Greg Bladwin, who spoke with Wimmera Mallee News earlier this week about how they face compulsory access from VicGrid in the near future.

This is about Australian stories, and all of Australia needs to hear Australian stories—whether it's documentaries, whether it's creative films—and streaming platforms need to invest in Australian stories. That is what this bill is about, and I will be moving amendments to ensure this happens.

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