Australia passes social media ban for under 16s

The law - described as "world-leading" - is set to come into force in November 2025.

It includes some of the toughest social media controls in the world and will force platforms to take reasonable steps to ensure age-verification protections are in place.

The law will make platforms like TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat, Reddit and X liable for fines of up to 50 million Australian dollars (£25 million) if they don't stop children younger than 16 from holding accounts.

The platforms will have one year to work out how to implement the ban before the fines come into force.

In September, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said his government would trial age verification technology before banning children from opening social media accounts later this year.

This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.

Please refresh the page for the fullest version.

You can receive Breaking News alerts on a smartphone or tablet via the Sky News App. You can also follow @SkyNews on X or subscribe to our YouTube channel to keep up with the latest news.