What Canada can learn from Australia’s floundering social media ban

The ultimate lesson is that age verification is an insufficient policy response on its own. Canada needs to rethink how we approach addressing online harms—not simply with launching a flat social media ban, but by building the infrastructure needed to design and regulate safe spaces for youth online.

Culture Minister Marc Miller is leading the work on Bill C-34, Safe Social Media Act, which was introduced in the House of Commons on June 10, 2026, and is waiting for a second reading. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade

Opinion

BY TREVOR POTTS

August 17, 2026

With more than 40 countries following Australia’s example to ban social media for youth, their eSafety commissioner has released a

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