<?xml version="1.0" encoding="ISO-8859-1"?> <docID>332665</docID> <postdate>2024-11-08 13:20:34</postdate> <headline>Social media youth ban a step closer after states agree</headline> <body><p><img class="size-full wp-image-332666" src="https://citynews.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/20241107153326856963-original-resized.jpg" alt="" width="900" height="600" /></p> <caption>The nation's leaders will discuss a proposal to ban children under the age of 16 from social media. (Lukas Coch/AAP PHOTOS)</caption> <p><span class="kicker-line">By <strong>Dominic Giannini</strong> and<strong> Tess Ikonomou</strong> in Canberra</span></p> <p><strong>A social media ban for children under the age of 16 is set to come into effect before the end of 2025 after Australian leaders signed off on the "world-leading" measure.</strong></p> <p>Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and the seven state and territory leaders agreed to the age restriction in a national cabinet meeting on Friday.</p> <p>Tasmania pushed for a lower limit of 14 years but agreed to go along with the rest of the nation for the sake of uniformity.</p> <p>"Social media is doing social harm to our young Australians and I am calling time on it," Mr Albanese told reporters after the meeting.</p> <p>The prime minister likened the move to "successful" bans on mobile phones in schools by the states and territories.</p> <p>"Kids are playing with each other at lunchtime, instead of playing on their phones. That's a good thing," he said.</p> <p>The government will introduce the legislation to parliament next sitting week and, with the coalition having previously flagged support, could see it passed before the year is out.</p> <p>The ban will come into effect 12 months later to give the industry, governments and the eSafety Commissioner time to implement it effectively.</p> <p>A trial of age verification and assurance technologies is currently under way and due to be completed in the first half of 2025.</p> <p>The point of the legislation is to protect young people so it will also have strong privacy provisions, Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said.</p> <p>"I want to make it very clear to the Australian people that the utmost support needs to be given to young people through the implementation of these measures," she said.</p> <p>Tech giants are wary of a social media age limit, saying it shouldn't be up to them to enforce the rules but rather app stores to ensure safety across the board.</p> <p>Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, argues against putting the onus on social media companies to enforce the proposed age limit, saying the technology for a perfect solution "isn't quite there yet".</p> <p>Parents and young people would carry the burden if each app needed to implement its own age controls, Meta's Australia and New Zealand policy director Mia Garlick said.</p> <p>"We completely agree that there needs to be age-appropriate experiences for young people on services like the ones we provide," she told ABC Radio on Friday.</p> <p>"The challenge is, the technology isn't quite there yet in terms of having a perfect solution."</p> <p>Ms Garlick defended accusations the tech giant was trying to pass the buck and protect profits, saying Meta already implemented safety controls such as asking people their age at sign-up and using artificial intelligence to detect if their age appears different.</p> <p>Social media was a driver of risky behaviour for children and has led to deaths after attempts to copy viral challenges, researcher Samuel Cornell told AAP.</p> <p>"I don't think it's a perfect solution, but harm is being caused to children and young people," he said of the proposed age limit.</p> <p>Platforms play a critical role in young people engaging with education, potential employers, health services and personal networks of people with shared interests, RMIT information sciences professor Lisa Given said.</p> <p>"They may be grappling with many different issues in their lives, without access to appropriate supports at home or in their communities," she said.</p> <p>Ms Rowland said exemptions could be made for educational and health platforms, such as YouTube Kids.</p> </body>