Any teenager with a brain will bypass these useless social media restrictions the moment they’re enacted

Canada is one of several countries, including the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Norway, Austria and Denmark, considering or proposing a social media ban for users aged 16 or younger. If Ottawa ultimately implements this plan, it would join a small list of countries to choose this course of direction: Australia (the first nation to ever initiate this policy in Dec. 2025), Indonesia and Malaysia.

While this discussion to protect young social media users may be well-meaning in principle, it will be a complete waste of time in practice. Ottawa’s proposed social media ban has no realistic chance of success.

Prime Minister Mark Carney “has faced calls from child safety advocates and children’s health organizations,” the National Post’s Stephanie Taylor wrote on June 8, “to revive efforts that were advanced under former prime minister Justin Trudeau to legislate tech platforms to tackle the harms users face.” Trudeau’s Bill C-63, or the Online Harms Act, was a controversial, draconian and anti-free speech proposal that mercifully died when the House of Commons was prorogued in January 2025.

Carney is going to revive it in a different fashion. His Liberal government’s plan, Bill C-34, would “establish a social media ban for minors younger than 16 will include provisions that allow platforms to seek exemptions should they demonstrate an ability to keep the youngest Canadians safe while using their products online.” While this piece of legislation “is not expected to include the same type of ban for AI chatbots,” it will “establish a set of responsibilities platforms need to meet.”

Bill C-34, also known as the Safe Social Media Act, would implement a “16-year-old minimum age requirement” for social media users. A Digital Safety Act would be introduced to “establish new safety requirements for social media services and AI chatbot services.” Social media services would have “A Duty to Make Certain Content Inaccessible” that could be harmful and victimize children or survivors of sexual abuse, as well as “A Duty to Act Responsibly” by reducing harmful content and blocking users who choose to abuse their social media privileges. There would also be a “Digital Safety Commission of Canada Act” to establish “a new Digital Safety Commission of Canada to administer the framework and to help foster a culture of online safety in Canada.”

Some Canadians will likely view Carney’s Bill C-34 as being more reasonable on the surface than Trudeau’s Bill C-63. While the language and measures are arguably a bit more tempered, the same obtrusive, draconian tone and principles haven’t disappeared. If the Liberal government ever emulates Australia and considers either implementing or increasing penalties for social media companies, it will only get worse.

Moreover, the proposed ban on social media platforms won’t work. While few would deny the issues, problems and concerns related to young children and access to social media, this would be an extremely poor decision.

Here are a few reasons why.

First, excessive government regulation in our lives has always been undesirable. Why on earth would we want more of it? We should always be demanding less of it. Canadians need to seriously think about it.

Second, these types of controversial and difficult decisions should be left up to parents, not politicians. This should almost go without saying. Unfortunately, it needs to be said on a regular basis in this country.

Third, where does Ottawa plan to exactly set the bar? Your guess is as good as mine. Based on the fact that there will reportedly be exceptions to AI chatbots, it could be a very low bar for the foreseeable future.

Fourth, does Ottawa really know how far-reaching social media is, from texting to gaming? Carney and the Liberals will suggest that they do. History has shown that this Liberal government, whether led by Trudeau or Carney, has huge gaps in their thinking, rationalizing and general expectations. That’s not a good sign in terms of what they’re planning to do with social media. Far from it, in fact.

Fifth, children will easily get around this ban. They’re more adept at social media than the vast majority of adults. If you think a social media ban is going to change anything and everything, you really don’t have any idea how the mind of a child works.

Sixth, if you think that putting the genie back in the bottle at this late date is going to help or work, you’re even more foolish than Carney and the Liberals.

These reasons, among others, help ensure that Canada’s proposed social media ban for users under the age of 16 will fail miserably if it’s implemented. The best strategy for Canada and other countries toying with similar legislation to do? That’s easy: don’t do it.

Michael Taube is a political commentator, Troy Media syndicated columnist and former speechwriter for Prime Minister Stephen Harper. He holds a master’s degree in comparative politics from the London School of Economics, lending academic rigour to his political insights.