Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Bernardi for that question. I think he was one of the senators who signed a letter previously supporting the proposal for ISP based filtering, as did, apparently, 78 of those in the opposition. It was a letter on ISP filtering organised by Senator Barnett.

The government is committed to taking an evidence based approach to ISP level internet filtering. On 10 November I released an expression of interest document seeking the participation of ISPs and mobile telephone providers in a live pilot. The application process for the EOI, as you mentioned, closes on 8 December. The pilot may begin before the end of 2008 and conclude in the first half of 2009. Despite the claims that it is going to be rushed through Christmas, Senator Bernardi, I can assure you that that is not the case.

Participation by ISPs in the live pilot is voluntary. The pilot will test the potential impacts of filtering technologies on internet speeds, the accuracy of filters, the circumvention costs and customer experiences in a real-world environment. The pilot represents an ideal opportunity to assess concerns that industry and the public may have about ISP filtering. A range of filtering solutions will be tested, including, at a minimum, filtering of the ACMA black list of prohibited internet content, largely child pornography. The pilot will provide evidence to assist the government with the implementation of its ISP filtering policy. I encourage all ISPs to come forward— (Time expired)