MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Australia’s states and territories unanimously backed a national plan Friday that requires most forms of social media to kids bar younger than 16 years.

The leaders of the eight provinces had a virtual meeting with the prime minister Anthony Albanese to discuss what he calls a national first-world approach that would make platforms like X, TikTok, Instagram and Facebook responsible for age enforcement.

“Social media is doing social harm to our young Australians,” Albanese told reporters. “The safety and mental health of our young people must be a priority.”

Government leaders had been discussing setting a limit for months, considering options ranging from 14 to 16 years.

While Tasmania would have preferred 14, the state was prepared to support 16 in the interest of achieving national uniformity, Albanese said.

A young woman uses her phone while sitting on a bench in Sydney, Friday, Nov. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)

Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS/Rick Rycroft

The legislation will be introduced in Parliament within two weeks, and the age ban will come into effect a year after it becomes law, giving platforms time to figure out how to exclude children. The government has not yet provided a technical solution.

The delay is also meant to allow time to address privacy concerns about age verification.

The main opposition party has backed the 16-year-old age limit in principle since it was announced on Thursday, suggesting the legislation would pass the Senate.

The minor Green Party was critical, saying the ban would prevent future child environmental activists such as Sweden from coming to Australia. Greta Thunberg.

More than 140 academics with expertise in areas related to technology and child welfare, signed an open letter to Albanese last month opposing social media age limits as “too clear a tool to effectively address the risks”.

Critics say most teenagers are tech-savvy enough to circumvent such laws. Some fear the ban will create conflict within families and drive social media issues underground.

Metawhich owns Facebook and Instagram, says stronger tools in app stores and operating systems for parents to control which apps their children can use would be a “simple and effective solution”.

The government compares the proposed social media age limit to laws restricting the sale of alcohol to adults aged 18 and over across Australia. Kids still find ways to drink, but the ban remains.

“We believe these laws will make a real positive difference,” Albanese said.

But Lisa Given, professor of information science at RMIT University, described the legislation as “really problematic”.

“A lot of our social media is actually about providing very critical information to children,” Given told the Australian Broadcasting Corp.

“There is no doubt that they also face bullying and other challenges online, but they need social support to know how to navigate platforms safely and therefore need more support from parents, from caregivers, no less access to a single or multiple platforms,” added Given.

Curtin University internet studies professor Tama Leaver described the government’s plan to remove 14- and 15-year-olds from their already established social media accounts as “weird”.

“If you’ve already developed that space in that world, to actually remove it could do as much harm as the damage that’s supposed to be repaired,” Leaver said.

“There are so many questions about this that are still unanswered, but even if we had solid answers about how this could work technically and how it could be implemented socially, it’s still hard to believe that this this would keep children safe online,” he added.

Minister of Communications Michelle Rowland said children would retain access to online education and health services.

The legislation would also include strong privacy protections around age verification.

“Privacy must be paramount, including that of children,” Rowland said. “We should also be very clear about the realities. These platforms know about their users in a way that no one else does.”

Rowland said YouTube would likely be among the main platforms defined under the legislation as age-restricted services.

But YouTube Kids might be exempt. Gaming and messaging services would not face age restrictions, she said,

“This legislation would strike a balance between minimizing harm to young people at a critical time in their development while also supporting their access to benefits,” Rowland said.

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