Australia wants a lower age limit for social media

The country’s prime minister, Anthony Albanese, is proposing a lower age limit law to restrict children’s use of social media, citing concerns about their mental and physical health. The proposed age limit is between 14 and 16 years.

In Australia, four out of five people use social media, and three-quarters of young people between the ages of 12 and 17 use platforms such as YouTube and Instagram, according to a University of Sydney study last year.

Albanese presented the proposal as part of an ongoing parliamentary inquiry into the impact of social media on society. Among other things, the inquiry points to the negative psychological effects of social media on teenagers.

– I want to see kids off their devices and onto the footy fields and the swimming pools and the tennis courts, Albanese told the ABC. “We want them to have real experiences with real people because we know that social media is causing social harm”.

Regulator skeptical

However, Australia’s own internet regulator, the eSafety Commissioner, warned in a submission to the inquiry that “restriction-based approaches may limit young people’s access to critical support” and drive them to “less regulated non-mainstream services”.

On the other hand, Albanese emphasizes that he wants to test the introduction of age verification before introducing actual minimum age laws for social media. No exact age has been set, but the proposed range is between 14 and 16.

If passed, Australia would be one of the first countries in the world to introduce a legal age limit for social media.