Gaming, AI considered in under-16 social media ban
Tuesday, 18 November 2025
The Government is considering controls on gaming, AI and online pornography as part of its social media ban for under-16s.
The ban, which has been promised by the National Party, has only been to prohibit under-16s from accessing social media sites, not bans on other online services.
A petition containing 44,000 signatures was presented to Parliament by advocacy group B416 in support of the Government’s moves on Tuesday.
Speaking at the petition’s presentation, Education Minister Erica Stanford said the legislation needed to be broad enough to capture “all the harm”.
It was not just social media that was harmful, ‒ a range of content online was being viewed by children, she said.
“You would never put your child in a car without a seat belt. You should never put something as dangerous as a phone in the hands of a child without protections.
“We now have in the hands of our children a device that is more powerful than we have ever known, and there are no protections.”
A regulator and a Child Protection Act is expected to be introduced and an announcement on what the ban will look like is expected in the near future, she said.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has previously signalled he is “deeply supportive” of banning social media, promising Government legislation before the next election, but coalition partner ACT has expressed wariness about the move.
The Government is following other countries which have implemented bans, including Australia, who has had its ban in place for just days.
A “two-track approach” is being taken, with a members’ bill brought forward by National MP Catherine Wedd and soon to be voted on in Parliament, and Stanford working on a separate Government bill.
She said it was about changing social media companies’ behaviour. “Social media companies love bans because they know that kids will get around the bans and continue using it anyway, and they don't have to change their behaviour.”
Olivia Lakeman, 18, said that shortly after she signed up to social media at age 13, her feed was flooded with eating disorder content, especially on TikTok.
She said she had watched as social media affected herself, her younger sister and her friends, and said “it's definitely not changing”.
“There's still that kind of circle of harm where you can stay out of it, but it's very difficult.”
She said she was late to download social media compared to her peers, who had social apps as young as six years old.
ACT Party leader David Seymour said he had heard from parents who were hugely concerned about predatory behaviour, inappropriate content, addiction and doom-scrolling on social media.
He said a ban was too simple as a remedy for these massive problems, and banning platforms would push kids into the worst parts of the internet.