Australia's centre-left government on Thursday introduced a bill in parliament that aims to ban social media for children under 16 and proposed fines of up to A$49.5 million ($32 million) for social media platforms for systemic breaches.
Australia's centre-left government on Thursday introduced a bill in parliament that aims to ban social media for children under 16 and proposed fines of up to A$49.5 million ($32 million) for social media platforms for systemic breaches.
Australia plans to trial an age-verification system that may include biometrics or government identification to enforce a social media age cut-off, some of the toughest controls imposed by any country to date.
The proposals are the highest age limit set by any country, and would have no exemption for parental consent and no exemption for pre-existing accounts.
"This is a landmark reform. We know some kids will find workarounds, but we're sending a message to social media companies to clean up their act," Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in a statement.
The opposition Liberal party plans to support the bill though independents and the Green party have demanded more details on the proposed law, which would impact Meta Platforms' Instagram and Facebook, Bytedance's TikTok and Elon Musk's X and Snapchat.
But Albanese said children will have access to messaging, online gaming, and health and education related services, such as youth mental health support platform Headspace, and Alphabet's Google Classroom and YouTube.
The Albanese-led Labor government has been arguing excessive use of social media poses risks to physical and mental health of children, in particular the risks to girls from harmful depictions of body image, and misogynist content aimed at boys.
A number of countries have already vowed to curb social media use by children through legislation, but Australia's policy is one of the most stringent.
France last year proposed a ban on social media for those under 15 but users were able to avoid the ban with parental consent. The United States has for decades required technology companies to seek parental consent to access the data of children under 13.
"For too many young Australians, social media can be harmful. Almost two-thirds of 14 to 17-year-old Australians have viewed extremely harmful content online, including drug abuse, suicide or self-harm," Communications Minister Michelle Rowland told parliament on Thursday.
The law would force social media platforms, and not parents or young people, to take reasonable steps to ensure the age-verification protections are in place.
The proposed law will contain robust privacy provisions, including requiring platforms to destroy any information collected to safeguard the personal data of users, Rowland said.
"Social media has a social responsibility ... that's why we are making big changes to hold platforms to account for user safety," Rowland said.
Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Canberra supports the U.S. strike on Iran and calls for de-escalation and diplomacy.
Indonesian police have arrested three Australian men in connection with a deadly shooting at a villa in Bali, which claimed the life of a fourth Australian and left another seriously injured, according to Bali police chief Daniel Adityajaya on Wednesday.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has pledged to counter the "damaging" notion that democratic systems are failing, especially during a time of widespread global instability.
China's Foreign Ministry is pushing for a "more mature, stable and fruitful" partnership with Australia. While seeking stronger ties, Beijing offered no details on reports of PM Anthony Albanese visiting this summer.
China has rejected accusations made by the defense chiefs of the US, Japan, Australia and the Philippines, who last week raised concerns over Beijing’s actions in the East and South China Seas.
U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he will probably meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during this week’s NATO summit, offering Kyiv an opportunity to push for U.S. Patriot missiles and stronger sanctions on Russia.
Kazakhstan is in discussions with Russia to relocate the production of the Soyuz-5 (Irtysh) launch vehicle from Russia to the Baikonur Cosmodrome, according to Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan on Tuesday called for an unconditional end to defence trade restrictions among NATO allies and expressed Türkiye’s interest in hosting the alliance’s 2026 summit.
Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze has announced reshuffles in Georgia’s economic leadership, unveiling new appointments.
Over 110 million people across Europe — or more than 20% of the population — are exposed to dangerous levels of transport noise that threaten human health, the environment, and economic stability, according to a new European Environment Agency (EEA) report released today.
Iran launched 18 ballistic missiles late Sunday targeting the U.S. military’s Al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar, the largest American installation in the Middle East.
Iranian missiles struck multiple locations across Israel and neighbouring regions early Friday morning, including a Microsoft office complex, according to emergency responders and local media reports.
A high-speed tram derailment in central Gothenburg, Sweden, has left at least eight people injured late on Thursday (19 June), after the vehicle slammed into a snack bar on Avenyn Avenue.
China has unveiled a mosquito-sized bionic drone designed for covert military operations and battlefield reconnaissance, marking a major advance in micro-robotics and stealth technology as part of the country’s growing focus on next-generation warfare capabilities.
Wizz Air has suspended all flights to and from Tel Aviv, Israel, and its European services to Amman, Jordan, effective immediately until 15 September due to escalating situation in the Middle East. Also, the air carrier temporarily suspended its flights between Astana, Kazakhstan, and Abu Dhabi.
European metal producers are urging the EU to restrict scrap exports, warning that rising US demand driven by Trump’s 50% tariffs threatens Europe’s green transition and efforts to cut carbon emissions.
China announced on Tuesday that it will host a large-scale military parade in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square on September 3, marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II. President Xi Jinping is scheduled to deliver a keynote speech during the commemorative events.
U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he will probably meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during this week’s NATO summit, offering Kyiv an opportunity to push for U.S. Patriot missiles and stronger sanctions on Russia.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan on Tuesday called for an unconditional end to defence trade restrictions among NATO allies and expressed Türkiye’s interest in hosting the alliance’s 2026 summit.
Qatar’s prime minister said on Tuesday that relations with Iran had been damaged by Tehran’s recent missile attack on a U.S. airbase in Qatar, but expressed hope that ties could eventually return to normal.
U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he will probably meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during this week’s NATO summit, offering Kyiv an opportunity to push for U.S. Patriot missiles and stronger sanctions on Russia.
Kazakhstan is in discussions with Russia to relocate the production of the Soyuz-5 (Irtysh) launch vehicle from Russia to the Baikonur Cosmodrome, according to Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan on Tuesday called for an unconditional end to defence trade restrictions among NATO allies and expressed Türkiye’s interest in hosting the alliance’s 2026 summit.
Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze has announced reshuffles in Georgia’s economic leadership, unveiling new appointments.
Over 110 million people across Europe — or more than 20% of the population — are exposed to dangerous levels of transport noise that threaten human health, the environment, and economic stability, according to a new European Environment Agency (EEA) report released today.
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