PM Criticizes Hold-up on Child Social Media Regulations
WHO:
ABC News - Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese condemned senators who blocked changes to the social media ban for children.
ABC News - eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant is Australia’s online safety watchdog.
ABC News - Greens Sen. David Shoebridge opposed the social media ban.
ABC News - Opposition communications spokesperson Sen. Sarah Henderson criticized the amendments.
WHAT:
ABC News - The government introduced amendments to increase the powers of the eSafety Commissioner to enforce a ban on children under 16 holding accounts on social media platforms.
ABC News - The amendments would allow the eSafety Commissioner to demand documents and information from platforms.
ABC News - The maximum fine for platforms failing to exclude children would double to 99 million Australian dollars ($68 million).
ABC News - The initial legislation passed with overwhelming support in 2024, targeting 10 platforms.
ABC News - More than 5 million children had accounts removed, deactivated, or restricted after the ban became law.
ABC News - Seven in 10 children who held accounts on restricted platforms remained on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok after the ban took effect.
WHERE:
ABC News - The events took place in Melbourne, Australia.
WHEN:
ABC News - The social media ban for children has been in place since December.
ABC News - The draft legislation was referred to an eight-week Senate inquiry on a Thursday.
ABC News - The eSafety Commissioner reported in March that improvements were not being seen.
WHY:
ABC News - Albanese stated that the delay would allow tech giants to destroy incriminating documents that could be used as evidence against them.
ABC News - Sen. Henderson described the social media ban as failing and poorly designed.
HOW:
ABC News - The amendments would give the eSafety Commissioner the power to demand information from third parties, including age assurance technology providers.
(UPDATED July 3, 2026 17:34 UTC)
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has condemned senators who blocked proposed amendments aimed at enhancing the powers of the eSafety Commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, to enforce a ban on children under 16 from holding social media accounts. The amendments would allow the Commissioner to demand documents from platforms, and the maximum fine for non-compliance would double to 99 million Australian dollars, following the initial legislation that passed with overwhelming support in 2024. Critics, including Greens Senator David Shoebridge and Opposition communications spokesperson Senator Sarah Henderson, have expressed concerns about the effectiveness of the ban, which has already seen over 5 million children having their accounts removed or restricted.