STATEMENTS BY MEMBERS

Ms MILLER-FROST (Boothby) (16:32): Today I want to talk about 'angertainment'. It's what makes social media so addictive and dangerous. It's why 'doomscrolling' makes you angry, depressed and isolated.

Evolution has made fear and anger priority emotions for our brain, because they're important for survival. But the social media giants have harnessed this, and their algorithms send you more and more extreme material to keep you hooked. They monetise you for their profit.

Social media also shortens your attention span, because everything is in short form. Misinformation, division and conspiracy theories go viral across our communities and across the world. Sadly, it's also a vector for bullying, abuse and sexual abuse.

That's why the Albanese Labor government introduced Australia's world-leading social media minimum age. But when you're taking on the biggest and best resourced tech companies in the world there will be challenges. Too many children are bypassing age assurance systems.

A Boothby mum told me she found TikTok on her 13-old-son's phone and asked him about age verification. He told her there wasn't any—and that simply isn't good enough. Social media companies need to comply with Australian law.

That's why we're strengthening the legislation, doubling the maximum penalties to $99 million. This is about supporting families and protecting young Australians online, and we'll keep working to make this law stronger, hold social media companies to account and put Australians and Australian children first.