Australia refutes Elon Musk's claim that it has plans to control access to internet

MELBOURNE: An Australian Cabinet minister on Friday rejected X Corp owner Elon Musk's allegation that the government intended to control all Australians' access to the internet through legislation that would ban young children from social media.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers said Musk's criticism was "unsurprising" after the government introduced to Parliament on Thursday legislation that would fine platforms including X up to 150 million Australian dollars ($133 million) if they allow children under age 16 to hold social media accounts.

"The idea that Elon Musk is not delighted with our steps to try and protect kids online is not an especially big surprise to us, nor does it trouble us greatly," Chalmers told reporters. The spat continues months of open hostility between the Australian government and the tech billionaire over regulators' efforts to reduce public harm from social media.