Social media age limit laws pass Parliament
Hon David Coleman MP
Shadow Minister for Communications
Member for Banks
We welcome the passing of legislation to introduce an age limit of 16 for young Australians to have an account with social media platforms.
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has led the national debate on social media age limits. In June this year, he committed a Coalition Government to implementing an age limit of 16, and said it would be a top priority for his first 100 days in office.
He called out the shocking impact of social media on kids – especially girls - and committed to taking strong and decisive action.
It has taken longer than we would have liked for the Government to act, but we are pleased that this law has now passed the Parliament.
Protecting children from social media is one of the defining issues of our era. In no other generation have children been exposed to so much damaging material at such a young age. It is crucial that we act to address this disturbing fact.
The legislation was passed after the Coalition negotiated changes which strengthened rules around privacy. Under our changes, people cannot be compelled to provide Digital ID, or government-issued identity documents such as drivers licences or passports. This is an important change.
The new system won’t be perfect – no laws are. Some kids will get around the system, just like people get around speeding or underage drinking laws. But this new law will make a real difference for Australian families.
It is the right thing to do to protect our children from online harm.
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