Mike Pezzullo casts doubt on Big Tech levy, TikTok bans
In a wide-ranging interview, the former Home Affairs boss said Australia may not be able to go it alone on a Big Tech levy, questioned the effectiveness of TikTok bans, and took aim at Elon Musk.
Former Home Affairs boss Mike Pezzullo has warned it will be difficult for Australia to impose a levy on tech giants in isolation, saying the better way to raise revenue would be through a multinational tax supported by the United States.
In a wide-ranging interview with Capital Brief on the future of tech policy, Pezzullo also suggested Australia should tread carefully in regulating misinformation and disinformation online and said X owner Elon Musk was promoting a distorted view of libertarianism.
As the Albanese government considers how to force more revenue out of Meta and Google to pay for Australian journalism, Pezzullo said he was sceptical about Australia’s ability to impose a levy on its own.
“In the end, if any national jurisdiction does it, Facebook or whomever is simply going to say: ‘Well, we won't operate in that market’,” said Pezzullo, who as secretary of the Department of Home Affairs until last year was at the forefront of regulating risky forms of emerging tech and cyber.
