Australia and UK vow to protect parliamentarians from online violence

Australia and the United Kingdom have committed to joint action against online violence targeting parliamentarians, particularly women. According to their joint statement, the toxic online environment is deterring talented people from standing for elected office.‍​​​​​​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‍

The statement indicates that women parliamentarians in Australia and the UK are three times more likely to report receiving sexualised or gender-based threats than men in parliament, both online and in person. Both governments also acknowledge that elected representatives have been killed or injured in Australia and the UK for carrying out their roles in their communities.

The governments have committed to bilateral Memorandums of Understanding to collaborate on ending gender-based violence and on online safety and security. They will work with the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians, and countries across the Commonwealth to develop practical solutions, including trialling software tools in their Parliaments.‍​​​​​​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‍

The governments plan to hold a forum in 2027 to bring together technology, expertise and practical solutions to protect parliamentarians from online abuse, with participation from countries across the Commonwealth.‍​​​​​​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‍

Source: Licensed from the Commonwealth of Australia under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence (pm.gov.au). Changes may have been made. Distributed via BLINK Wire. Original release