Maria Walsh: EU must act as Meta faces DSA probe
Maria Walsh addresses the European Parliament about children’s safety online after preliminary findings that META may be in breach of the Digital Services Act. She argues for EU-wide legislation to hold platforms and perpetrators accountable and highlights Ireland’s COCO's law as a model of enforcement.
Maria Walsh, MEP, warns that failures in age safeguards expose children to prolonged harm on platforms such as Facebook and Instagram. She references the European Commission’s preliminary finding that META may have breached the Digital Services Act and calls for unified EU action.
Walsh highlights Ireland’s COCO's law and says enforcement is producing results: over 400 charges and summons have been issued. She presents this as evidence that targeted laws and accountability can work at national level.
Walsh argues that one country acting alone is insufficient, because algorithms amplify harmful content and cyberbullying spreads faster than it can be contained. She urges clear rules, real enforcement and consequences across the EU to protect minors.
Speaking in the chamber, Walsh invokes the names Jackie Fox and Nicole Coco Fox to underline the human cost behind the debate and to stress the urgency of legislative action to protect children online.
Summary
Maria Walsh, MEP, warns that failures in age safeguards expose children to prolonged harm on platforms such as Facebook and Instagram. She references the European Commission’s preliminary finding that META may have breached the Digital Services Act and calls for unified EU action.
Ireland’s response
Walsh highlights Ireland’s COCO's law and says enforcement is producing results: over 400 charges and summons have been issued. She presents this as evidence that targeted laws and accountability can work at national level.
Why EU-wide rules matter
Walsh argues that one country acting alone is insufficient, because algorithms amplify harmful content and cyberbullying spreads faster than it can be contained. She urges clear rules, real enforcement and consequences across the EU to protect minors.
Personal impact and accountability
Speaking in the chamber, Walsh invokes the names Jackie Fox and Nicole Coco Fox to underline the human cost behind the debate and to stress the urgency of legislative action to protect children online.
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Transcript
Grazie onorevole, prego onorevole Walsh, prego. Every day, like you, I read another story of a child harmed by the online world, another statistic, another life changed. And when children are on platforms they're not supposed to be on, harm only increases. Today, the European Commission has preliminary found that META may be in breach of the Digital Services Act for failing to properly prevent minors from accessing platforms like Facebook and Instagram. This absolutely matters. Because when age safeguards fail, children are exposed earlier, longer and more intensely to environments where cyberbullying thrives. Algorithms amplify harmful content and abuse spreads faster than it can be contained. I'm proud that Ireland has taken action that targeted laws on cyberbullying. Since COCO's law was introduced, we've seen over 400 charges and summons issued. That shows progress. It shows accountability can work. But one country acting alone is simply not enough. We need an EU-wide legislation that holds both perpetrators and platforms accountable, real enforcement, clear rules and real consequences. We need to do this for the mother called Jackie Fox and of course we owe it to Nicole Coco Fox. Thank you very, very much.