Canada’s House of Commons introduced a bill yesterday that would force companies to block children under age 16 from accessing their social media platforms or artificial intelligence chatbots.

• Culture Minister Marc Miller correctly said these tools “do not support healthy childhood development and have become a source of anxiety, isolation, depression and a range ​of other mental health challenges for many young Canadians.”

Trouble is, it’s one thing for a parent to protect his child from the very real dangers of social media—it’s a different matter when a government attempts to do the same.

Miller promised, “This legislation will ‌provide a safer environment for young Canadians and empower them to connect in-person, build friendships, focus in school, and learn real-world skills so they can thrive.”

But will it? A couple of potential problems:

• The government plans to grant exceptions to companies that commit to meeting specific safety standards. In other words, those that gain the government’s favor can win exemptions while their competitors will not. X, which is known for refusing to censor content critical of governments, may be at a disadvantage, while Facebook and TikTok, which are equally or even more harmful to children, may be exempt.
• How do you enforce the ban? Miller says he doesn’t know yet. Will people have to upload IDs that will jeopardize their social media anonymity? If so, the government could more easily target its critics. Increasing Canada’s already extensive surveillance of its citizens and curtailment of their freedoms could be the most significant effect of such a law.

Anytime the government steps in as the parent, problems result, and things get messy.