Ottawa's soon-to-be introduced digital safety bill poised to include a social media ban

Prime Minister Mark Carney's government is expected to table legislation as soon as Wednesday which could restrict young Canadians' access to social media platforms.

"I think it's obvious why it's priority. Kids are dying," said Canadian Identity Minister Marc Miller on his way into a cabinet meeting on Tuesday.

Earlier this week, the Globe and Mail reported that the bill will propose a ban on social media for children under 16 and stand up a new digital regulator to establish safety standards, including how to address harms caused by the rise of artificial-intelligence chatbots.

The newspaper reported that companies that then meet that criteria would be permitted to allow young Canadians back on their platforms.

Neither Miller, who is the lead on the bill, nor Justice Minister Sean Fraser would confirm what's in the legislation — citing rules protecting the confidentiality of bills before they're tabled in the House of Commons.

"I think it suffices to say that we will take all reasonable measures to make sure kids are safe in this country," said Miller.

The bill — called the Digital Safety Act and the Digital Safety Commission of Canada Act — follows months of consultations as the government looks to resurrect its online harms bill. A previous attempt died when former prime minister Justin Trudeau prorogued Parliament in early 2025.

That divisive bill included Criminal Code and Canadian Human Rights Act amendments, targeting content used to bully a child or encourage a child to harm themselves, hate speech, content that incites violence or terrorism, content that sexualizes children or victims of sexual violence and sexual content that is posted without consent.

At the time Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre accused the government of chilling free speech, saying bullying and other forms of online harms should be handled by police, not "pushed off to a new bureaucracy."

Ahead of this new bill, Fraser pushed back on accusations the government is trampling on free speech.

"You don't have to give up your freedoms in order to ensure people can live safe in a society," he said.

"When you're meeting with the parents who are dealing with a child who's been bullied, not only in the schoolyard but when they come home at night, it doesn't feel particularly free for that kid living their life day to day."

WATCH | Australia issues social media ban for kids under 16:

Australia has issued a ban on social media for kids under 16, passing a world-first law through its Parliament. Many parents are celebrating the move, but social media companies say it’s been rushed.

Miller's bill comes as a number of other countries plan to curtail children's access to social media and days ahead of the G7 in France where the issue is also expected to be raised.

Australia became the first country late last year to set a minimum age to possess an account on TikTok, YouTube and Meta's Instagram and Facebook.