Oz telecoms minister backtracks on mandatory Internet censorship proposals

Yesterday, in a subdued performance that, for those listening at least, made a pleasant change from his usual "I know better than you do, so shut-up" stridency, the Australian minister of communications, Stephen Conroy, told a Senate estimates committee that the mandatory Internet filtering system that the Rudd administration has been so single-mindedly pursuing may, after all, turn out in the end to be no more than a "voluntary industry code".

However, the change of tack isn't so much the result of a change of heart on the part of the government. It is more of a pragmatic response to political reality. The Rudd administration doesn't have the support it needs in the Australian Upper House to push through the controversial legislation and, rather than abandoning its proposed censorship regime altogether, has decided to go for an optional system that could later become mandatory should the necessary second chamber support suddenly materialise.

Facing persistent questioning by the opposition's shadow minister of communications, Nick Minchin, Stephen Conroy trimmed the government's hitherto adamant stance and accepted that Australian ISPs may be allowed to make Web content filtering voluntary. He said, "While mandatory ISP filtering could involve legislation, a voluntary approach could be available to ISPs."

Obviously speaking off-the-cuff and seeming to make up policy on the fly, Conroy's arguments were as tortured as his English. He added, "One option is potentially legislation. One other option is that it could be voluntary basis that they could voluntarily agree to introduce it." Ah, the beauty and economy of the language of Shakespeare.

Shadow minister Minchin leapt on this government volte-face and asked why this was the first time the Australian people has heard that the hard-line determination to impose Internet censorship by law has been softened to such an extent that might now be voluntary.