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Saskatchewan’s premier says the provincial government will poll the public about potentially banning minors from using social media sites.
In a post on X – formerly Twitter – Premier Scott Moe shared the results of a survey published on Sunday by the Angus Reid Institute in which 75 per cent of the 4,005 people surveyed supported a ban on social media for those 16 and under.
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The issue has recently been pushed back into the spotlight following a court decision in the U.S., which awarded a plaintiff $3 million in damages from Meta and YouTube, finding the social media giants responsible for harm caused to children who were addicted to their platforms.
Moe noted that Australia has already taken steps to restrict social media use by minors, and said Canada should be moving in the same direction. Last year, Australia became the first country in the world to legislate a ban on social media for anyone younger than 16.
“Canada should be considering options to limit social media use by minors,” Moe wrote.
“In the coming weeks, our government will be asking Saskatchewan people for their views on this matter.”
The Angus Reid survey also found that 65 per cent believe teens “are not capable of using social media responsibly,” and found 92 per cent were worried about young people being exposed to misinformation, while 90 per cent had concerns about online bullying.
Additionally, 85 per cent of those surveyed said they were worried kids might be exposed to explicit content, while 94 per cent voiced concerns about mental health due to social media use.
“Although a ban – which will reportedly by discussed by the Liberal Party at its convention in April – would be welcomed by most parents, more say that the responsibility for regulating social media use should fall to the parents (72%) rather than governments (20%),” the think tank noted.
The provincial government has already taken some steps to limit the amount of time young people spend glued to phones, banning smartphones from K-12 classrooms across the province in 2024.
–with files from The Canadian Press
