Australia’s world-first social media ban has passed the parliament, but it will do little to protect Australian children, writes Melissa Marsden.
The Albanese Government’s new social media laws masquerade as making the internet safer for children despite statistics showing the outside world has a reputation for being more dangerous.
Whilst in most states in Australia the minimum age of criminal responsibility is 10 years old — yet there is a distinct lack of anti-bullying legislation.
On an average night in the June quarter of 2023, 812 young Australians aged 10 and over were in detention because of their involvement – or alleged involvement – in criminal activity.
There are no details as to whether these convictions resulted from online or offline crimes. However, the sudden push by the government to ram new social media laws into effect suggests it is not the children who perpetrate crimes that are under scrutiny.
Statistics show that young people are most likely to …