The Regulatory Reform for Safer Online Services and Media Platforms is a proposal led by the Department of Internal Affairs to regulate online content and reduce harm, particularly for children. It would apply to “regulated platforms” meeting audience thresholds and introduce new compliance and oversight requirements.
The Taxpayers’ Union opposes the proposal, arguing it is overly broad, poorly defined, and would capture organisations not responsible for harmful content. We raised concerns about heavy compliance costs, vague definitions, lack of clear exemptions, and the use of subjective standards in regulation.
The proposal risks enabling censorship, creating a chilling effect on free expression, and allowing regulation to be used as a political tool. If implemented as drafted, it could undermine democratic debate and impose significant costs on organisations without clear public benefit.
