SYDNEY, SEPT 10 – Australia will ban children from using social media with a minimum age limit as high as 16, the country’s prime minister said today in a pledge to get kids off their devices and ‘out into the fields’.
Federal legislation to keep children off social media will be introduced this year, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has said, describing the website’s impact on young people as ‘catastrophic’.
The minimum age for children to log on to websites such as Facebook, Instagram and TikTok has not been decided but is expected to be between 14 and 16, Albanese said.
Trials of age verification will be carried out in the coming months before the law is introduced by the end of the year, the centre-left leader said.
“I want to see kids get off their devices and get out into the fields, pools and tennis courts,” Albanese said.
“We want them to have real experiences with real people because we know that social media causes social harm,” he told the national broadcaster ABC.
In a series of media interviews about the plan, Albanese said it was his personal priority to restrict social media for children under 16. – AFP
