Online Safety Amendment (Fix Our Feeds) Bill 2026: what it proposes and where it stands

The short answer

Online Safety Amendment (Fix Our Feeds) Bill 2026: what it proposes and where it stands

The Online Safety Amendment (Fix Our Feeds) Bill 2026 is a Private Senator's bill introduced in the Senate on 1 April 2026 by South Australian Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young. The bill would amend legislation seeks to amend the Online Safety Act 2021 to give social media users in Australia the right to opt out of algorithmically recommended content, and to impose new transparency and risk-management obligations on online service providers. The bill was introduced and read a first time on 1 April 2026, with the second reading moved on the same day. As a private senator's bill, its path through the Parliament faces the additional hurdle of securing government support or sufficient crossbench backing to progress. It is Before Senate as of 17 July 2026.

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Evidence review

Overview

The Online Safety Amendment (Fix Our Feeds) Bill 2026 is a Private Senator's bill introduced in the Senate on 1 April 2026 by South Australian Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young. The bill seeks to amend the Online Safety Act 2021 to give social media users in Australia the right to opt out of algorithmically recommended content, and to impose new transparency and risk-management obligations on online service providers. The bill was introduced and read a first time on 1 April 2026, with the second reading moved on the same day. As a private senator's bill, its path through the Parliament faces the additional hurdle of securing government support or sufficient crossbench backing to progress.

Evidence review

Key Provision: A Right to Opt Out of Algorithmic Feeds

At the heart of the bill is a proposed requirement that social media services provide users with the option to opt out of receiving recommended content through algorithms at any time. This would mean that a user could toggle their feed to display content in chronological order or through some other non-algorithmic arrangement, rather than being served content selected by an opaque recommendation engine. The provision reflects growing international concern about the effects of algorithmic content curation on public discourse, mental health, and the spread of misinformation — themes that have been prominent in parliamentary and public debate in Australia since at least 2021, when the Online Safety Act first came into force.

Evidence review

Reporting, Risk Assessment and Mitigation Obligations

Beyond the opt-out mechanism, the bill would impose certain reporting and risk assessment and mitigation obligations on providers of online services. While the bill's explanatory memorandum — tabled alongside the first reading text — would set out the detail of these obligations, the bill's design signals an intent to make platform companies more accountable for the systemic risks their services create. This approach aligns with regulatory trends in the European Union under the Digital Services Act and in the United Kingdom under the Online Safety Act 2023, both of which require platforms to conduct risk assessments and take steps to mitigate harms identified through those assessments.

Evidence review

How the Bill Fits Into Australia's Online Safety Framework

The Online Safety Act 2021, which this bill would amend, established the eSafety Commissioner's powers to address cyber-bullying, image-based abuse, and illegal or harmful online content. The Fix Our Feeds Bill does not seek to dismantle that framework but to add a new layer of user-facing control. By focusing on algorithmic curation rather than content takedown, the bill addresses a different dimension of online harm: the way platforms structure what users see, rather than just what they can report. The bill's second reading was moved on 1 April 2026 and no proposed amendments have been circulated as of the latest parliamentary records.

Evidence review

Prospects and Political Context

As a Private Senator's bill, the Fix Our Feeds Bill would need to secure a majority in the Senate and the support of the Government in the House of Representatives to become law. Private bills in the Senate have historically faced difficulty progressing without government backing, although crossbench support in the 48th Parliament — with a diverse Senate crossbench including the Greens, One Nation, Jacqui Lambie Network, and several independents — means that some private bills have received more serious consideration than in previous parliaments. No committee referral has been recorded for the bill to date, and no second reading debate date had been set at the time of the bill's introduction.

Evidence review

What This Bill Would Mean for Australian Social Media Users

If enacted, the Fix Our Feeds Bill would give Australian social media users a statutory right to opt out of algorithmic content recommendations — a right not currently guaranteed under Australian law. Users on platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, X (formerly Twitter), and YouTube would need to be given a clear, accessible option to switch to a non-algorithmic feed. The bill's reporting and risk assessment obligations would also mean that online service providers would face regulatory consequences if their algorithms were found to be causing harm without adequate mitigation. To date, no proposed amendments have been circulated, and no schedules of amendments have been tabled.

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