Australia Abandons Proposed Mandatory AI Rules in New Plan

Government Opts for Voluntary Frameworks Over Enforceable Safeguards Rashmi Ramesh (rashmiramesh_) • December 2, 2025

Three months after proposing mandatory artificial intelligence guardrails with regulatory teeth, Australia's government earlier today released a national plan that asks companies to consider safety measures instead.

See Also: Going Beyond the Copilot Pilot - A CISO's Perspective

The contrast between the proposal and the final plan reveals the scale of the government's backtracking. In September, officials outlined 10 mandatory guardrails covering accountability, risk management, data governance, testing protocols, human oversight, transparency, contestability, supply chain visibility, record keeping and conformity assessments. The requirements would have applied to both high-risk AI deployments in sectors such as healthcare and law enforcement, as well as to all general-purpose AI models regardless of their eventual application.

Industry and Innovation Minister Tim Ayres and Assistant Minister for Science, Technology and the Digital Economy Andrew Charlton reportedly described ...