The vast majority of those surveyed in Saskatchewan support social media limits for young people. The results of a Government of Saskatchewan-sponsored survey launched in May were revealed on Thursday. Posed with the question: “Do you support social media limits for children under the age of 16?” 86.34 per cent of residents answered yes, while 13.66 per cent answered no. A total of 68 per cent of respondents also supported the idea of parental consent being necessary for kids to use social media. “The reason we sent the survey out is because we wanted to actually know what people thought,” Minister of Mental Health and Addictions Lori Carr told reporters Thursday morning. “ … Having these results really overwhelmingly tell us that 86 per cent of parents and families think there should be some sort of social media limits up to the age of 16 is where that comes in. Of that other 14 per cent, 68 per cent thought there should actually be parental consent. If you culminate the two, it is super overwhelming that there should be some sort of, really, protections for our youth.” Carr pointed out that over 26,000 households took part in the survey. However, it is unclear if parents, families or Saskatchewan residents filled them out individually or as a group. People who did not receive a mailed ballot and contacted the ministry were able to share their opinion verbally, Carr added. Jeph Maystruck and his wife voted in favour of the ban. “We have kids and to me, I’ve seen the negative side of social media. People that are addicted to the phone or the scroll and so it’s hard to vote against that,” Maystruck told CTV News. Aside from being a parent, Maystruck also works as the chief interrupting officer at Strategy Lab, a digital agency in Regina. Based on his experience, he said using social media plays a role into people’s mental well-being. “Studies show the more you use social media, the worse your mental health gets and we’ve seen it all over the place at work, friend circles, in our family,” he said. “The people that are on their phones, generally, [are] not the happy go lucky ones that are wanting to talk to you or engage in a conversation.” He added a government related protocol would help enforce the rules for parents at home. “Having kids that are not on [social media], that’s becoming less of an issue now because if the government has banned it, well, now dad isn’t the bad guy saying, ‘Hey, get off Facebook,’” Maystruck said. The survey included major social media platforms like TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and SnapChat. YouTube was the platform most identified as requiring an exemption from the limits, with 30.89 per cent. All other platforms received around 17 per cent support on the question. “The youth share with us that YouTube is one of the problems because of its addictive algorithm, the interface, the nonstop play and many youth of young ages are exposed to harmful content on that platform,” explained Laura Lawrence, executive director of Youth Matter Canada. According to the province, when asked what age should apply for potential restrictions, 58.47 per cent of those surveyed, said kids aged 16 and younger. A total of 13.13 per cent said the limits should be imposed for those 18 and younger. What are the next steps? The province says it will provide the feedback to the federal government to help “inform Saskatchewan’s participation in broader discussions regarding online safety and the wellbeing of young people.” The survey was announced in early May and ran until June 30. Although Maystruck is in favour of the ban, he is concerned how the policy would be implemented. “To think about, okay, we’re going to ban this … Now when you go into Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, we want to learn everything about you to make sure you’re not a child. That’s really, really hard,” he said. “Again, let’s check out what Australia is doing right now because they’re struggling with it … I don’t want to discount the fact that a ban would be a good idea, I think it’s really good thing. Just how do we enforce it?” In early June, the federal government introduced Bill C-34, or the Safe Social Media Act, into the House of Commons. If passed, the legislation would enact two new acts, The Digital Safety Act and the Digital Safety Commission of Canada Act. The new acts will force social media platforms to block access for kids under 16 — if the platforms do not install sufficient safeguards for kids. The legislation also aims to regulate the companies responsible for AI chatbots. Although the legislation has already been introduced, Carr said she believes its important for the federal government to know what Saskatchewan families think. “We’re just in the process of actually setting up a follow up meeting with Marc Miller to discuss firsthand the results of these surveys with them,” Carr said. “I think it’s important for them just to understand where Saskatchewan families are at and what the data is that we’ve received.”
