MINISTER FOR COMMUNICATIONS ANIKA WELLS: Good morning, everyone. Whilst, obviously, I can't speak to the details of the case that is currently being heard in the High Court. I will say, as Australia’s Minister for Communications, that the question of what we accept from tech platforms who offer us an online world is the most compelling policy question of our time. And we are here to defend a fundamental tenet of Australian democracy, which is an Australian’s right, and particularly an Australian child's right, to be free from harm.

We seek to defend that from sustained ideological attack. And I'll continue to work on the Digital Duty of Care, which we passed through the House of Representatives last week, and seek to put before Senate, and pass before the Parliament by the end of the year. Any questions?

JOURNALIST: A large part of Reddit's case is the rules that you made narrow the focus of the ban to platforms that had specific features. Why didn't you get it right and target those features in the first place in the bill as passed?

WELLS: I wasn’t the Minister at that time, but I will say that I should probably refer the ins and outs of the case as we hear from the High Court.

JOURNALIST: That said Minister, you'd no doubt be aware of the legal advice that the Commonwealth has given on how solid the government's legislation is. Are you confident the legislation is legal?

WELLS: I am. And you will hear the Commonwealth’s arguments that we’ve prepared in days to come.

JOURNALIST: So you expect to win?

WELLS: I absolutely do not. I respect the decision and the work of the High Court, and I will respect any decision that the High Court makes. But I have, obviously, reviewed the arguments as the second defendant of the case, and I believe in the immense value and the importance of the work we are doing here.

JOURNALIST: Can you just speak to the government’s relationship with Reddit now that they’ve brought this case to the court?

WELLS: We speak with all tech platforms regularly, particularly as we seek to legislate the Digital Duty of Care, which is a holistic and seismic reckoning for tech platforms, including Reddit, to make sure that they are accountable for the risks that they impose on their users online.