QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE

Mr CLARE (Blaxland—Minister for Education) (14:19): Can I thank the Herculean and hairy member for Hunter for his question. A couple of years ago we banned mobile phones in schools. We're already seeing the impact of that; it's been massive.

But it's just the start. Every parent knows the impact that screens are having on their kids at home and how it's turning them into zombies, and we're now seeing the evidence of the impact of screens in our schools. The evidence is showing us that the more time kids spend online the more likely it is that their results decline.

I told the parliament yesterday that there's a reckoning coming. We're already seeing that overseas. Los Angeles has just announced that they're going to set screen-time limits for kids in primary school.

New York has just done the same thing. In fact, 17 states in the US have now introduced or are debating legislation to set screen limits in schools. We're starting to see the same thing happen here in Australia.

From term 1 next year, in Victoria, there'll be screen-time limits for kids in primary school. The same thing will happen in New South Wales, and Western Australia has just announced this week that next year they'll roll out a pilot of a ban on screens for kids from kindergarten to year 2 in public schools. In a couple of weeks time, when ministers meet, we'll talk about what the next steps are.

So that's what we're doing inside schools, but we've also got to look at what happens outside of schools and what's happening online. This is where all of our reputations are on the line, because I think all of us know what a cesspit social media and online gaming can be. I think all of us know that every single parent in the country is worried about this and expects us to do something about it, and that's what the Online Safety Amendment (Digital Duty of Care) Bill that was introduced today is all about.

The Minister for Communications told a story this morning about a 14-year-old girl who was approached by an adult on Roblox. They started chatting on Roblox. That conversation moved to Discord.

That's where he asked her to send him photos, explicit photos. Then he blackmailed her. Then he asked her to write his name in blood on a wall.

Then he asked her to livestream her own suicide. I don't think any parent could think of something more horrific. Surely we've got to put the acid on these tech companies to do something to stop this.

Every mum and dad wants this sick stuff out of their kids lives and out of their kids heads. We just want our kids to be kids, and that's what this bill does. That's what it's all about.

I think every parent in the country would be shocked and sickened if the Liberal Party makes the decision to vote against this.