Maire Devine (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the delegates for their presentation. This is the world in which we live which sometimes is unfortunate.

Facebook has 1 billion users. What proportion of them are children? At what age should a child be allowed to sign his or her life away to Facebook?

In addition to Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp, what are the other social media sites? Facebook and other social media sites generally make a good input to communities. Children's lives are being played out through social media, which often makes life miserable for them. Just last week, we read media reports on an inquest into the death of an 11 year old child in Dublin. Self-harm and suicidal ideation are observable in primary schools, whereas they tended to be linked with secondary schools in the past. I believe social media are one of the major reasons suicidal ideation and self-harm are now observable in primary schools. The reason I have asked a question on age limits is that children of seven, eight, nine, ten or 11 years are immature and must be protected from misery. Unfortunately, we will not be able to stop social media. I dislike them and find them very boring. I do not want to use them, but I have to do so.