Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced on Thursday that Australia will introduce a legislative social media ban for children under 16. He described the measure as “world-leading laws” that could be introduced next year.
Currently, Australia is testing an age verification system that will help prevent children from accessing social media apps and platforms, as part of a measure package that will be some of the most strict measures In the world.
In a statement, Albanese said, “Social media is doing harm to our kids and I’m calling time on it.”
Some of the risks the Australian government hopes to mitigate with the ban include, the physical and mental health of children under 16
Australian Prime Minister Albanese also said that some of the risks the social media ban hopes to mitigate for children under 16 include, children’s physical and mental health due to excessive social media use.
He also highlighted that the ban hopes to protect young girls from potentially harmful depictions of body image, and misogynistic content aimed at young boys.
Albanese said, “If you’re a 14-year-old kid getting this stuff, at a time where you’re going through life’s changes and maturing, it can be a really difficult time and what we’re doing is listening and then acting.”
Australia’s proposed social media policy regarding children is one of the toughest in the world
Social media continues to become one of the primary issues for lawmakers, especially considering the effects these platforms can have on young and impressionable minds.
Despite this issue being on the agenda for most countries around the world, perhaps no country has introduced such radical and strict measures as Australia.
For instance, there is no other country in the world that has tried introducing age verification methods that cannot be overpassed, like biometrics. Additionally, no other government in the world has introduced age-based social media restrictions based on age.
The legislation will be severe as it is expected to introduce the highest age limit to access social media set by any country, and no exceptions for parental consent and pre-existing accounts.
Australia’s social media ban is expected to come into effect in the next 12 months
The novel legislation is expected to come into effect in the upcoming year after it is ratified by Australian lawmakers in parliament.
This new perspective on the social media ban has the overwhelming support of lawmakers, with the opposition liberal party expressing support for the measure.
Australia’s communications Minister, Michelle Rowland, also said that some of the platforms that will fall under the ban will be, Instagram and Facebook, TikTok and X. It is also expected that YouTube will fall under this ban.
Australia Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the government would legislate for a ban on social media for children under the age of 16, a policy the government says is world-leading https://t.co/lSw3mOv8b6 pic.twitter.com/nNymp6dqfG
— Reuters (@Reuters) November 7, 2024
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