RELATED: B.C. is rolling out new legislation to better protect people, particularly children from companies that develop harmful and addictive products. Global News Morning speaks with Meryln Horton of SafeOnline Education about the proposed legislation. - Mar. 16, 2024 – Mar 16, 2024The B.C. government is putting its proposed online harms legislation on hold after reaching an agreement with some of the largest social media platforms to make people safer online.
Premier David Eby says in a joint statement with representatives of the firms Meta, TikTok, X and Snap that they will form an online safety action table, where they’ll discuss “tangible steps” towards protecting people from online harms. Eby says the social media companies have “agreed to work collaboratively” with the province on preventing harm, while Meta will also commit to working with B.C’s emergency management officials to help amplify official information during natural disasters and other events.The announcement to put the bill on hold is a sharp turn for the government, after Eby announced in March that social media companies were among the “wrongdoers” that would pay for health-related costs linked to their platforms.
The premier says in announcing the pause that bringing social media companies to the table for discussion achieves the same purpose of protecting youth from online harm. “Our commitment to every parent is that we will do everything we can to keep their families safe online and in our communities,” the premier says in his statement.Read