Mark Speakman
NSW Leader of the Opposition
Alister Henskens
Shadow Attorney General
Felicity Wilson
Shadow Minister for Women
The NSW Opposition has welcomed the Minns Labor Government's decision to act on sexually explicit deepfakes, after the Opposition introduced its own legislation to criminalise deepfake abuse and scheduled the second reading of its Private Member's Bill in the Parliament today.
The Crimes Amendment (Deepfake Sexual Material) Bill 2025, put forward by the Opposition, aims to criminalise the production, sharing and threat to share AI-generated sexual content designed to humiliate or exploit a real person.
After the Opposition's move announced last month, the Government has been spurred into action and now announced it will introduce legislation of its own, with similar objectives. The Opposition will work constructively to ensure strong protections are delivered quickly.
Leader of the Opposition Mark Speakman said deepfake abuse is a growing threat that demands swift action.
"This is not a grey area. If someone is creating or spreading sexually explicit deepfakes to degrade another person, they should face serious consequences," Mr Speakman said.
"We flagged this last month and prepared a bill to deal with it. I'm pleased the Government is now taking steps in the same direction. This is about protecting people from being digitally violated."
Shadow Attorney General Alister Henskens said the Opposition's bill laid strong groundwork for tough, modern protections.
"No one should have their image or voice used against them like this. If it's not your body, not your voice, it's not someone else's right to control," Mr Henskens said.
"The Coalition's bill set out a path forward and we're encouraged that the Government is now backing this much-needed reform."
"It's a shame that this minority government doesn't work with the opposition to try and address these important social issues. This is a fake Premier copying our deepfake legislation."
Shadow Minister for Women Felicity Wilson said deepfake abuse is already damaging lives and the time for change is now.
"This isn't a future problem. It's happening now in classrooms, workplaces and on social media," Ms Wilson said.
"Women and girls are being targeted by fake images that look terrifyingly real. We've put solutions on the table and we'll work to ensure the final law is strong, clear and fast."
The Opposition's bill proposed a legal definition of deepfakes, new criminal offences, penalties for private and public sharing, and court powers to order takedowns and destruction of synthetic material.
The Opposition will continue to work in good faith to get these reforms right and ensure the law reflects the serious harm being caused.
