Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that social networks now have a responsibility to ensure the safety of children , after the parliament adopted a bill providing for a ban on the use of these services by persons under the age of 16, reported Reuters, quoted by BTA.
The bill on the ban on the use of social networks by children has sparked heated debates across the country.
The House of Representatives (the lower house of the Australian parliament) on Wednesday approved the bill by an overwhelming majority of 102 to 13. The next day, the Senate (upper house) passed the bill with 34 votes to "for" and 19 "against". The House of Representatives today approved amendments to the texts made by the opposition in the Senate, with which the bill became law, notes the Associated Press.
Parliament's decision ranks Australia among the countries with some of the toughest regulations targeting transnational online services companies.
"Platforms now have a social responsibility to ensure that for them the safety of our children is a priority," Albanese told journalists today.
The law obliges companies that own platforms such as "Instagram", "Facebook", "TikTok", "X" etc. restrict minors' access to their social networks or face fines of up to AUD 50 million (US$33 million).
Control methods for implementing the new requirements will begin to be tested in January, and the ban itself will come into force in a year.
The rapid adoption of the new legislation in parliament has drawn criticism from companies and MPs, who say the bill has not been discussed thoroughly enough.
Albanese said today that passing the bill before the end of the period in which technology to verify the age of social network users is over is the right approach.
"We are sending a very clear message about our intentions,", stressed the Australian Prime Minister. "The legislation is very clear. We do not claim that its implementation will be perfect, just as, for example, banning the use of alcohol by under-18s does not mean that no minor will ever have access to alcohol. But despite this, we know that the decision is right," concluded Albanese.