Social media ban to keep children safe: PM
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says Australia’s world-first ban on social media for people under 16 will lead to less harm and better outcomes for children.
Federal parliament signed off on laws on Friday that will bar under-16s from being able to access social media, following a late-night sitting of the Senate.
The laws, which will come into effect from late 2025, will capture platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Reddit and X.
Exemptions will apply for health and education services, including YouTube, Messenger Kids, WhatsApp, Kids Helpline and Google Classroom.
Albanese said social media companies would have a greater responsibility to keep children safe online.
“Parents can have a different discussion with their young ones, a different discussion that will result in better outcomes and less harm for young Australians,” he said in Canberra on Friday.
“Platforms now have a social responsibility to ensure the safety of our kids is a priority for them.”
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Social media sites will have to take reasonable steps to prevent under-16s from creating accounts, with $50 million fines to be imposed on companies for systemic breaches.
Albanese said the 12-month gap between the laws being passed and coming into effect would ensure the changes were effective.
“What we’ve done is world-leading. We’ll work to make sure that it’s got right. But the legislation is very clear,” he said.
“We don’t argue that its implementation will be perfect. Just like the alcohol ban for under 18, it doesn’t mean that someone under 18 never has access, but we know that it’s the right thing to do.”
Age-verification trials on how young people would be stopped from accessing social media continue.
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton said the ban would be a relief to parents.
“It’s something that most, most parents around the country would give a head nod to because these big tech companies only see our kids as a profit-making venture,” he told Nine’s Today program.
“Hopefully we can keep young kids, young impressionable minds, off Snapchat and other social media platforms.”
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Communications Minister Michelle Rowland has said social media users wouldn’t be forced to hand over government-issued IDs, including passports, to verify their age.
But it’s unclear how age will be confirmed without identity verification, a parliamentary committee found.
It also found that while protecting children was a legitimate aim and the ban could be capable of that, it was unclear if the measures would be a proportionate limit.
Social media companies, individuals and human rights groups have raised concerns that the laws have been rushed through without proper scrutiny, with Australia the first country to implement such a ban.
“Moving forward, it is important that the government works closely with industry to fix issues created by this rushed process. We want to work together to keep teens safe and reduce the unintended consequences of this bill for all Australians,” video platform TikTok said on Friday.
A spokesperson for Facebook owner Meta said: “The task now turns to ensuring there is productive consultation on all rules associated with the bill to ensure a technically feasible outcome that does not place an onerous burden on parents and teens and a commitment that rules will be consistently applied across all social apps used by teens.”
Snapchat said it would “as always” comply with Australian laws, and would work with the government and the eSafety Commissioner in the next year to “develop an approach that balances privacy, safety and practicality”.
Human rights groups and mental health services opposed a total ban, warning that vulnerable children could be isolated from accessing support.
Improving safety would have been a better approach, they argued.
ESafety commissioner Julie Inman Grant has said while children need to be protected online, marginalised kids still need a way to connect with others.
– with AAP
