OCTOBER 24 — In “In Australia, children under 16 will soon be banned from social media”, I wrote that Australia has legislated a world-first ban on children under the age of 16 signing up for social media accounts.
New Zealand may soon follow.
In May this year, National Tukituki MP Catherine Wedd put forward a Members’ Bill professing to protect young people from social media harm by restricting access for under 16s.
“Social media is an extraordinary resource, but it comes with risks, and right now we aren’t managing the risks for our young people well,” Wedd said in a statement.
She then explained her Members’ Bill as follows:
“My Social Media Age-Restricted Users Bill is about protecting young people from bullying, inappropriate content and social media addiction by restricting access for under 16-year-olds.
“The Bill puts the onus on social media companies to verify that someone is over the age of 16 before they access social media platforms. Currently, there are no legally enforceable age verification measures for social media platforms in New Zealand.
“As a mother of four children I feel very strongly that families and parents should be better supported when it comes to overseeing their children’s online exposure.
“Parents and principals are constantly telling me they struggle to manage access to social media and are worried about the effect it’s having on their children.
“The Bill closely mirrors the approach taken in Australia, which passed the Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Bill in December 2024.”
“Other jurisdictions are also taking action. Texas recently passed legislation which bans under 18s from social media use and the UK, the EU and Canada all have similar work in train.
“This Bill builds on National’s successful and successful cell phone ban in schools and reinforces the Government’s commitment to setting our children up for success.”
According to a Reuters report on Thursday (October 23), the Bill has received support from National Party members, but its coalition partners have not confirmed whether they will support the bill.
Members’ Bills can be introduced by any lawmaker not in the cabinet and are selected after a ceremonial lottery.
While it is not immediately clear when the Bill will be introduced in the country’s Parliament, its parliamentary committee (PC) is reported to have been looking at the impact of social media harm on young people and the roles that government, business, and society should play in addressing those harms. A report from the PC is due in early 2026.
As Catherina Wedd alluded to in her statement, the restriction moves are part of a growing international trend. Read a Newsweek report here:
Will Malaysia follow or unfollow?
