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The Australian government plans to introduce a minimum age limit on the use of social media this year amid concerns about the dangers of excessive screen use by young people.
With politicians comparing the potential harm caused by screen addiction to the damage caused by cigarettes and alcohol, the policy, which will set an age limit of between 13 and 16, could mean children can no longer access sites such as TikTok and Instagram. If implemented, it could be one of the first such initiatives globally.
Anthony Albanese, Australia’s prime minister, said on Tuesday that parents were “worried sick” about their children using social media and that the welfare of the country’s teenagers was “paramount”. “Parents want their kids off their phones and on the footy field and so do I,” he told the ABC broadcaster.
With growing global pressure on tech companies concerning teenage social media addiction, screen use is expected to be a campaign issue in next year’s Australian election.
The country’s opposition Liberal party has said it would introduce a ban on the use of social media by under 16s within 100 days of being elected. The state of South Australia has already pushed ahead with planned legislation to force social media companies to restrict access to younger users.
The government has said it will start a A$6.5mn ($4.3mn) trial this week that will test a system for preventing access to pornographic websites and limiting younger users from using social media services.
The Liberal party has criticised the latest policy, calling for more detail on the age limit and how usage would be restricted. It is also unclear what would constitute a social media site or if the policy would cover messaging tools such as WhatsApp or Facebook Messenger, games such as Animal Crossing and Roblox and streaming services such as Twitch.
Meta, which owns Instagram and Facebook, told a parliamentary inquiry last week that it would support legislation that would mean Apple and Google — as the operators of app stores — having to verify the age of phone users and require parents to give permission to download social media apps.
Some question the feasibility of introducing a social media age verification system. Previous government initiatives have been watered down or abandoned.
Dana McKay, a lecturer at RMIT University in Melbourne, said that a blanket ban on children using social media could have negative effects on youngsters who increasingly use social media to define their personalities in an age where there is less willingness from parents to let them socialise unsupervised.
“I get that parents are scared — it (social media) can be terrifying — but banning kids from the last public square they have won’t help,” she said. “What problem are we trying to solve and is legislating kids the way to do it?” she said.
Australia has pushed technology companies on several fronts in recent years including an initiative to force companies including Google and Facebook to pay for news and taking legal action against Elon Musk’s X to remove violent footage from the site.
The move to limit children from accessing social media could trigger a negative reaction from voters, according to McKay, who might perceive it as “nanny statism”.
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