Madrid
Children and teenagers will be banned from using social media from the end of next year in Australia, after the government passed the first law of its kind. Although the law is approved now, it will not come into force for another year to allow social media companies to adapt to comply with it.
This means that anyone under 16 years of age will not be able to use platforms such as Tik Tok, Instagram, Snapchat or Facebook. A measure that the government considers necessary to protect your mental health and well-being.
Deputies and senators from all parties questioned and in some cases booed the main parties, calling the law hasty and defective. Liberal MP Bridget Archer also broke with her party’s order to vote with the Greens and a handful of independents against the House bill.
The main parties had moved quickly to pass the legislation before the year ended in parliament, despite reservations from some coalition MPs – the Greens and independents – who were calling for more time and greater scrutiny.
The tech companies also called for the debate to be delayed until the government’s age verification trial is over. Under the laws, social media companies could be fined up to $50 million for failing to take reasonable steps to keep children under 16 off their platforms.
There are no penalties for youth or parents who disobey the rules. Tech companies will also not be able to force users to provide government identification, including digital ID, to assess their age.
“Messaging applications”, “online gaming services” and “services with the primary purpose of supporting the health and education of end users” will not fall under the ban, as well as sites like YouTube that do not require Users log in to access the platform.
Danielle Einstein, a clinical psychologist who has supported the campaign to raise the age at which children can access social media, said social media offered no mental health benefits for young people, as far as she could see.
But Nicole Palfrey, of mental health organization Headspace, was more circumspect, telling the inquiry that any harm from social media needed to be balanced with the benefits of connecting and “help-seeking” online, especially for children. who live in remote or rural areas.
