‘Inspiring’: PM praises 12-year-old social media ban advocate Flossie and shows off new friendship bracelet

Anthony Albanese proudly showed off 12-year-old student Flossie Brodribb’s new friendship bracelet and said his defense of the government’s social media ban on children under 16 was “inspiring”.

Prime Minister Flossie met her mother Romany Brodribb and neuroscientist Dr Lila Landowski in Canberra on Thursday and Flossie presented her with the bracelet.

Flossie has researched the effects of social media on childhood development and has become a passionate advocate for a ban.

Speaking on Question Time, Mr Albanese said the ban would take Australian children “offline and into life” and said Flossie’s work to encourage other children to embrace life away from devices was “pretty phenomenal”.

“This is social change coming from the bottom up, supported by both sides of parliament,” he said.

“It comes from parents who have lost their sons and daughters, but it also comes from young people like Flossie who say, play sports with your peers, play music, read books, communicate with each other to benefit your life, not only until you turn 16, but also for the betterment of your life.

“Flossie, for researching what the neurological impact of social media is and the damage it does, and for being an articulate, inspiring advocate, and on behalf of this parliament, I think everyone in this parliament, thank you for the work you’ve done in terms of the leadership you’ve given to young Australians.”

The ban, which became law in 2024, will come into force on December 10.

The legislation forces tech platforms to verify the age of their users and deny access to those under 16.

Major platforms such as Facebook, TikTok, Snapchat and X fall under the ban.

If tech companies fail to comply, they could face fines of up to $49.5 million.

The ban followed a joint initiative by psychologists and parent groups concerned about the impact of social media on children.

At a hearing before the laws were passed last year, Australian Parents Council vice-president Karen Robertson said “swift and meaningful” reforms were needed to give children “a life beyond screens”.

“We lost the power to be parents,” she said.

“Technology companies now own our children.”

On Thursday, Mr Albanese expressed confidence that the ban would be successful, insisting that it had come from the “bottom-up” rather than a top-down government edict.

“This is not a top-down debate,” he told the ABC.

“This is an argument that comes from the bottom, from the people, from the parents, from those who have tragically lost their sons and daughters.

“So this is not a debate that stems from the government making a decision and telling the public, ‘This is what needs to happen’, here it is the exact opposite.

“This is the community that demands an appropriate response from the government and demands that social media companies demonstrate social responsibility.”

Last month Communications Minister Anika Wells said the new laws “will not mean perfection, but they will mean a significant and meaningful difference”.

“They will spread the cultural change to young people aged 13-16 in this country,” he said.

“Unfortunately, seven in 10 young Australians have seen things online that they shouldn’t have seen that harmed them.

“This statistic is too scary to ignore, and we took action.”