Dear Committee Secretary,
One-day consultation period manifestly inadequate for a rigorous scrutiny of U16 Social Media Ban Bill
The Institute of Public Affairs (IPA) welcomes the opportunity to make a submission to the Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Bill 2024 (“the bill”).
There are legitimate concerns in the community about how children interact with social media and the internet. The stated object of this legislation is to reduce the risk of harm to children, an objective which most Australians would likely agree is worth pursuing.
But to dignify these concerns the federal government and opposition should commit to a full and proper process to investigate all possible options, including the status quo, to ensure the right policy responses to this important issue are adopted by lawmakers and supported by the community.
The consultation period of one day is manifestly inadequate. It shows a lack of seriousness on behalf of the federal government in respect to this significant issue. The proposed changes stand to radically alter the way social media users interact with digital platforms and will potentially affect the lives of almost every Australian. Yet, the federal government does not appear interested in listening to the varied perspectives of the community on this important manner.
This rushed process almost ensures that a suboptimal outcome will be adopted whereby there will no doubt be unintended consequences which could impose real costs on Australian social media users.
