Quebec school students participated in a youth screen time commission.

A committee made up of all four of the province’s main political parties visited 18 schools in six regions of Quebec to talk to teenagers and children about screen time.

Members of the “Special Commission on the Effects of Screens and Social Networks on Youth Health and Development” were at Paul-Jarry Elementary School in Lachine to present an update on their findings and discuss the issues that need to be addressed to reduce harm to youth.

“What we heard that was most disturbing and obvious is about social media and how many girls feel that there is a regression of feminism and a lot more misogyny on social media,” said Elisabeth Prass, Quebec Liberal Party MNA for D’Arcy-McGee and the opposition mental health spokesman. “The whole notion of influencers and the influence they have over kids sponsoring different products for kids.”

“They know there’s a problem. They know they’re stuck on it, on their social media, on their phones. And they want to solve the problem,” said Enrico Ciccone, Quebec Liberal Party MNA for Marquette and commission vice-chair.

In a survey conducted in February by La Fédération des comités de parents du Québec and the English Parent Committee Association, 14,000 parents in Quebec identified screen time as their biggest concern.

“What we found was that children who have special needs are three to four times more likely to use screens,” said Katherine Korakakis, president of the English Parent’s Committee Association of Quebec. “And we found that the older you get, the more time you spend on screens and it affects your mental health, your ability to connect with people. So overall, there are a lot of concerns for families across Quebec.”

The commission faces challenges it says with the recent closure of TikTok Canada’s office and trying to reach out to Meta — Facebook and Instagram’s parent company — which canceled a recently scheduled meeting with them.

CAQ MNA and Commission Chair Amélie Dionne indicated that there were still discussions with Meta Canada for a possible appearance. “It was a matter of availability, we are continuing our discussions, the communication channel is open with Meta,” she said.

“We will continue to work with Meta. We will use all the tools we have at the National Assembly. … We have the power to sue, but we don’t hope to go that far, Ciccone added.

The commission adds that it is committed to continuing discussions with all social media platforms, in addition to other consultations.

“This is very rare, in the history of the National Assembly, to have a commission like this. It’s for all of us coming together, a reason, an important reason in our community,” said Ciccone.

“There will be a second round of consultations, and we will meet with other groups and I invite everyone until January 25th to go online, please fill in the questionnaire and tell us how you feel from a student point of view.”

–With files from La Presse Canadienne