Government Calls for Ireland to Lead on Child Online Safety
Government says Ireland should lead on child online safety during 2026 EU Presidency as Digital Wallet age verification plans move forward while Australia bans under-16s.
The Government has said Ireland should use its upcoming EU Presidency to lead on children's online safety, as plans move forward for age verification on social media platforms.
The announcement comes as Australia became the first country in the world to ban under-16s from social media platforms on 10 December, with Ireland closely watching the rollout while taking a different approach.
Deputy Keira Keogh, the Mayo TD who chairs the Oireachtas Children's Committee, said new steps are being taken to introduce age verification to better protect children online.
The move follows Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport Patrick O'Donovan's update to Cabinet this week on plans for a Digital Wallet pilot programme, which will be used to verify users' ages before they can access platforms including YouTube and Instagram.
The development of the Digital Wallet is led by the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer, with the Department of Culture, Communications and Sport working on providing an age verification tool within the wallet.
Patrick O'Donovan, Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport:
"Great progress has been made with regard to the implementation of Ireland's online safety framework, and I commend Coimisiún na Meán for this work. Now, we must ensure that the measures that have been put in place are as effective as possible, and the key to this will be the introduction of a robust and secure age verification tool."
Minister O'Donovan clarified that the development of an age verification tool is distinct from the topic of a potential 'digital age of majority'.
Speaking at Government Buildings on Wednesday, he confirmed Ireland is not currently planning to follow Australia's outright ban on social media for under-16s, but is instead focusing on age verification systems and pursuing coordinated action at EU level.
Patrick O'Donovan:
"I believe that any decisions around potential age-based restrictions on social media usage should be taken at EU-level to ensure a harmonised approach and a robust legal basis."
Australia's world-first legislation, which came into effect from midnight local time on 10 December, requires platforms including TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Snapchat and X to prevent under-16s from holding accounts or face fines of up to €28 million.
Keira Keogh, TD and Chair of the Oireachtas Children's Committee:
"The primary motivation and aim, led by my colleague Minister Patrick O'Donovan, is securing our children's future. Parents are doing their part in trying to protect their children from online dangers like pornography, cyberbullying and harmful algorithms that can lead to exploitation."
The Mayo TD said a Fine Gael Online Safety Survey gathered views from more than 2,200 parents and guardians across the country, finding overwhelming support for age limits and verification.
Keira Keogh:
"We've heard what parents had to say on this, and now we're acting."
The Digital Wallet pilot is expected to launch early next year and will be used to confirm the ages of internet users.
Deputy Keogh also highlighted the Government's allocation of €6 million to schools across the country to support mobile phone restrictions, with Minister for Education Hildegarde Naughton working with schools, teachers, parents and students on the initiative.
Keira Keogh:
"When Ireland assumes the EU Presidency in 2026, we have a real opportunity to take the lead on this important issue and deliver stronger protection measures for children."
Ireland will hold the rotating EU Council Presidency from July to December 2026.
Patrick O'Donovan:
"Ireland will hold the Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the second half of next year, and I intend to make the online safety of young people a priority."
Last week, Ireland's media regulator Coimisiún na Meán signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Australia's eSafety Commissioner to share data, research and best practice on online safety, showing both countries are closely aligned on protecting minors online despite taking different regulatory approaches.
Ireland already has a digital age of consent of 16 under the Data Protection Act 2018, and Coimisiún na Meán adopted a binding Online Safety Code in October 2024 requiring video-sharing platforms to put in place robust age-assurance measures.
