by MONICA O’SHEA – AUSTRALIA’S eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant has confirmed her agency will enforce the Parliament’s impending ban on under 16s accessing social media.
Social media corporations could face fines of $49.5m for failing to take reasonable steps to prevent children from holding an account.
- Submissions to the Bill closed only one day after the Bill was introduced into the Parliament.
- The Coalition will work “in good faith” with the government to support social media ban legislation.
- One Nation and The Greens have raised concerns about the bill’s introduction.
“I am here to enforce the laws. And this is a matter for Parliament,” Ms Inman Grant told ABC Radio this week.
“There’s an inquiry happening today, and what I have continued to say is that it is really, really important that any bill like this is nationally consistent.
ENFORCE
“So, all of these need to work in tandem together. And we will see what the outcomes of the inquiry are, and of course, we will enforce and carry out what the will of the Parliament is.”
She added that it was important to ensure that particularly vulnerable and marginalised children still have a way to connect, create and explore.
“Whatever we do when we implement what will become the law, we will try and do this in a way that is really protective of the range of children’s rights, including their ability to communicate and express themselves online,” she said.
The eSafety commissioner said she had recently returned from a 10-day trip in Europe, where she met with 30 online safety regulators.
There, they discussed making online platforms create “safety by design” features for their users.
“I think that’s really important because these algorithms are opaque, and they can send people down rabbit holes,” she said.
“We’ve been promoting safety by design for more than six years. And unfortunately, we’ve only seen social media sites moving incrementally, not monumentally, in terms of keeping kids safe.”
The commissioner was also asked if she had concerns on the role X owner Elon Musk will play in the incoming Trump administration.
“Well, my job is not to be concerned with what Elon Musk is doing unless he is hurting the safety of Australians,” she said.
BAN
Meanwhile, Communications Minister Michelle Rowland revealed last week that the social media ban would apply to TikTok, Facebook, Instagram and X, among others.
Other platforms such as YouTube, and messaging apps will not be affected, as it could affect communication with family and friends.
“We are not saying that risks don’t exist on messenger apps or online gaming,” she told Parliament this week.
“While users can still be exposed to harmful content by other users, they do not face the same algorithmic curation of content and psychological manipulation to encourage near endless engagement.”
Shadow Communications Minister David Coleman confirmed that the Coalition would be working “in good faith” with the government to finalise the social media ban legislation.
“The Leader of the Opposition committed the Coalition to a social media age limit of 16 back in June,” he said.
“It should have happened then, but we’re pleased it is finally happening now. This issue is urgent.”
However, there has reportedly been some disquiet within the Coalition on the ban, including concerns raised by Nationals Senator Matt Canavan and Liberal Senator Alex Antic about how young users will be tracked.
“Keep in mind, all users will have to verify their age even though the ban only applies to children under 16,” Mr Canavan said in an X post.
The government has suggested social media companies will need to implement “some form of age assurance” to identify account holders in an explanatory memorandum to the bill.
“The Bill does not dictate how platforms must comply with the minimum age obligation,” it states (pdf).
One Nation Leader Pauline Hanson and Greens Senator Hanson Young have both raised concerns about the timeframe of the bill’s introduction.
This week the Senate referred the bill to the Environment and Communications Legislation Committee for a report by November 26.
Submissions to the inquiry closed on November 22, only one day after the Bill was introduced into the parliament.PC
Another one of Malcolm’s disasters
Why not get serious & enforce a law – no puberty blockers & irreversible surgery under 16, that would really mean something.
Yes all SM users will be required to provide whatever personal data is sought to retain access.
And Inman Grant will be insisting on yet another encroachment on privacy to suit Big Government and add to the meta data raid booty.
Access to SM by children is the direct responsibility of their carers, be they parents, relatives, school teachers, in fact any person providing access. That is where the law must apply.
That the Coalition seems to be in cahoots is beyond disappointing. It is a betrayal.