The Albanese government has dropped a controversial ministerial power that would have allowed the communications minister to ban additional categories of social media content, unlocking a path for its digital duty of care package to pass when federal Parliament returns on Monday. Labor confirmed the change on Sunday after the Coalition branded the provision political censorship and the Greens refused to support ministerial discretion over what Australians can see online.
What the bill still does
The legislation requires platforms to let users opt out of recommendation algorithms, shifting feeds toward chronological or user-selected ordering. It also imposes a duty of care on social media companies to keep harmful material away from children, including pornography, bullying and content that glorifies crime. Only Parliament, not a minister acting alone, can add new categories of banned material after Labor’s backdown.
Government sources told Australian Associated Press that the Greens were unlikely to block the bill now that the ministerial ban clause is gone, though the party said it would reserve judgment until it saw the final text. The Coalition had not guaranteed support, but Labor is still negotiating for crossbench votes as it tries to move a crowded legislative agenda in the final sitting weeks of 2026.
Why the fight mattered
David Shoebridge, the newly elected Greens leader, drew a hard line against giving any minister the ability to proscribe harms beyond those written into the act. Conservative MPs argued that a Labor minister could use the power to silence critics ahead of elections. Labor ministers countered that the clause was a safety valve for emerging harms, but conceded on Sunday that the politics had become untenable.
The dispute played out while small business groups were already angry about separate government moves on card surcharges and capital gains tax changes for trusts. Industry lobbyists warned that algorithm rules could hurt digital advertising for independent retailers, while parent groups and schools urged MPs not to delay youth protections.
Parliament’s crowded week
Beyond social media, the government plans to introduce legislation for a 30 percent minimum tax on discretionary trusts, a May budget promise that faces resistance from family-owned firms. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will also host Jordan’s King Abdullah II in Canberra, adding a diplomatic overlay to a sitting week dominated by domestic economic fights.
If the digital duty of care passes, regulators will need to spell out how opt-outs work in practice and how platforms prove they are shielding minors. For now, the headline is procedural but significant: Labor chose to sacrifice ministerial flexibility to keep its broader platform accountability bill alive, betting that visible action on algorithms and child safety matters more to voters than a contested censorship lever.