The nation’s youngest entrepreneurs have earned an ally in the Australian Greens, who fear a social media ban for those aged 16 and under could deprive them of important information and career opportunities.
The Senate Environment and Communications Legislation Committee handed down its hurried report on the proposed legislation Tuesday, ultimately finding Parliament should pass legislation limiting access to platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook for young Australians.
But a dissenting report came from the committee’s deputy chair and Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young, who argued against the proposal on the grounds it could stifle the career development of young workers.
Social media provides a “platform for young people to engage in politics or kickstart future careers, and banning platforms would stifle this ability,” she said.
Banning young people would make it impossible for ventures like 6 News Australia — the news organisation founded by Melbourne teenager Leo Puglisi when he was just 12 years old — to get off the ground, she said.
Puglisi opposes the Bill, using a submission to tell the committee “we should allow kids to explore their creativity online in whatever field they may want to enter, and we should ensure that these platforms are safer.”
“Less explored and investigated due to the outrageous timeframe for this inquiry, is the impact that banning social media will have on other industries like Australian music,” Hanson-Young continued.
“Discoverability is the major challenge for up-and-coming Australian artists, and many rely on social media platforms to reach new audiences.”
More broadly, the Greens argue young people will simply circumvent any ban, instead urging the government to enforce a duty of care upon those platforms and forbid them from “harvesting and exploiting the data of minors” for advertising purposes.
Some carveouts for businesses do exist in the proposed legislation.
An explanatory memorandum attached to the Bill says the proposed ban will only affect logged-in users, meaning those accessing a business’ Facebook page to see their opening hours or address could do so with or without an active Facebook account.
Digital platforms that allow communication for business purposes — like marketplaces that permit users to leave reviews — will not be affected by the proposed ban, either.
It will be left to the Senate to determine if the Bill ultimately becomes law after the Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Bill 2024 passed in the House of Representatives on Wednesday morning.
Despite opposition from the Greens, and scepticism from Independent Senator David Pocock, who has reserved his decision on the Bill, the government-led bill appears likely to pass into law after gaining Coalition support.
Some Coalition Senators have voiced their opposition, namely Senator Matt Canavan, also a committee member, who used his dissenting report to argue for parental consent exemptions, confirmation any social media ban does not rely on users submitting Digital ID, and more time for lawmakers to consider the issues before Parliament breaks for Christmas.
But the bipartisan Senate committee ultimately found the Bill worthy, despite the minimal time allowed to consider the legislation and concerns that young people — those most principally affected by the proposal — were largely excluded from its consultation process.
The federal government has also agreed to amendments in the Senate ensuring users do not need to hand over government identity papers or Digital ID, assuaging some of Senator Canavan’s key concerns.
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Senior Business Journalist
Focused on the small business sector, David’s work covers the political, regulatory, and economic issues facing Australian entrepreneurs. Prior to joining SmartCompany, he was a reporter for Business Insider Australia. You can follow him on LinkedIn.
