MELBOURNE, Australia — The Australian House of Representatives on Wednesday passed a bill that would ban children under the age of 16 from social media, leaving the Senate to finalize the world’s first law.
Major groups have backed a bill that would make platforms including TikTok, Facebook, Snapchat, Reddit, iX and Instagram liable for fines of up to 50 million Australian dollars ($33 million) for system failures to prevent minors in holding accounts.
The legislation passed 102 to 13. If the bill becomes law this week, platforms will have one year to determine how to apply the age restrictions before penalties are applied.
Opposition MP Dan Tehan told Parliament that the government had agreed to accept amendments in the Senate that would strengthen privacy protections. Platforms will not be allowed to force users to provide government-issued identification including passports or driver’s licenses, and will not require digital identification through a government system.
“Will it be perfect? No. But is there an absolute law? No, it’s not. But if it helps, even if it helps in small ways, it will make a big difference in people’s lives,” Tehan told Parliament.
The bill was introduced in the Senate late Wednesday but was tabled hours later without a vote. The law is likely to be passed on Thursday, the last session of the Parliament of the year and possibly the last one before the election, which must be held within months.
Major parties support all but ensure that the legislation will be passed in the Senate, where no party has a majority.
Lawmakers who did not support the government or the opposition were strongly critical of the law during the debate on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Criticisms include that the law was rushed through Parliament without due consideration, would be ineffective, would create privacy risks for users of all ages and would deprive parents of the right to decide what is best for their children.
Critics also say the ban will alienate children, rob them of the positive aspects of social media, drive children to the dark web, make children too young on social media to be reluctant to report harm, and remove incentives to use platforms to make online spaces safer.
Independent attorney Zoe Daniel said the law “will make absolutely no difference to the harm that exists on social media.”
“The real purpose of this law is not to make social media safer by design, but to make parents and voters feel like the government is doing something about it,” Daniel told Parliament.
“There is a reason why the government shows this law as the best in the world, it is because no other country wants to implement it,” he added.
Forums have called for the vote to be delayed until at least June next year when a government-commissioned review of age verification technology reports on how the ban would work.
Melbourne resident Wayne Holdsworth, whose 17-year-old son Mac took his own life last year after falling victim to an online sex scam, described the bill as “critical for the safety of our children.”
“It’s not the only thing we have to do to protect them because education is the key, but giving our children and parents immediate support so they can handle this is a good step,” said the 65-year-old. A cyber security campaigner told The Associated Press on Tuesday.
“And in my opinion, it’s the biggest moment in the history of our country,” he added, referring to pending legal changes.
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