Social media ban for under-16s: Government to fight High Court challenge

The minister spearheading a world-leading social media ban has addressed a High Court challenge to the incoming laws, saying she would spend the summer working to beat the opposition.

Minister for Communications Anika Wellshas vowed to fight the challenge to the social media ban. Picture: Richard Dobson

Communications Minister Anika Wells has vowed to spend all summer working on the government’s defence of a High Court challenge on Australia’s world-leading social media ban for teenagers under 16.

The constitutional challenge comes from NSW Liberatian MP John Ruddick alongside the Digital Freedom Project and two high school students arguing that the legislation infringes of implied freedom of communication of government and political matters and are “grossly excessive”.

The submissions will be heard next year and the under-16s social media ban will begin from Wednesday as planned.

Ms Wells, who is currently under-fire for travel allowances incurred during overseas and domestic trips, said she was confident the government will defend the challenge.

“We are working with the Solicitor General on the High Court challenge... and we’re really confident that we can put forward a very strong case and be successful,” she told Sky on Sunday.

“This is really important law. (I am) Not surprised, given how world leading it is that people want to have a go at knocking it off. That’s their right but I’m going to be spending the summer working on that high court case to make sure that this law is upheld.”

Ms Wells also said that she had “every expectation” some teens would try to get around the ban and foreshadowed intial hiccups with age assurance and delays in account deactivation at the start of the ban.

Instead she said the ban was a “treatment plan” and “not a cure,” and said the government‘s next step would be to establish a digital duty of care for social media platforms.

“People might have a different experience if they’re on different three different platforms, three different times their account gets deactivated but the point is, it’s happening,” she said.

She also flagged upcoming work to establish a digital duty of care for social media platforms.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has already labelled the ban a “success”. Picture: NewsWire/ Gaye Gerard

Ms Wells urged young teens who are set to lose access to their apps to access support through e-Safety and youth mental health organisations.

While the Coalition intially voted in favour with Labor to establish the social media ban, they’ve since criticised the roll out.

Anthony Albanese said the ban was a “success already” because its encouraged discussions on social media between parents and children.

“This is a change that hasn’t come from government, this is a change that has come from parents, taking what is a personal tragedy and channelling that into wanting no other parents to go through the heartbreak they have experienced,” he said.

Ahead of the ban, Labor have repeatedly met with parents Emma Mason, who lost her daughter 15-year-old daughter Tilly following a lengthy spate of online bullying.

Although the Prime Minister said the rollout of the ban “won’t be perfect” he stood by the action as “the right thing to do,” and compared it to alcohol laws which prohibit teenagers under 18 from accessing alcohol.

Originally published as Social media ban for under-16s: Government to fight High Court challenge