Britain announces ban on social media for children

The British government plans to ban all children under the age of 16 from accessing social media, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Monday, after weeks in which the nation debated how it would introduce new protections for children online.

Mr Starmer said the government would introduce new regulations in parliament before Christmas and bring the ban into effect at the start of 2027. The measures will also include restrictions on gaming platforms and live streaming apps, with further details expected to be announced next month.

“I am not prepared to compromise on the safety and happiness of our children, which is why this ban has to happen,” Starmer told a news conference.

The government has faced growing pressure to act on the issue as public opinion has coalesced around the idea that more needs to be done to keep children safe online. One YouGov survey in December found that 74 percent of Britons polled supported a ban on social media for under-16s.

Mr Starmer acknowledged the ban might not be perfect and would not be free, but added: “Government is always about choices and it is clear to me that a total ban is the right choice.”

In March, the government invited the public to comment on the issue and received more than 116,000 responses from parents, young people, industry groups and experts.

The government said 90 per cent of parents who responded supported a minimum age of 16 to access social media and that 85 per cent said the risks of social media outweighed the benefits.

The measures will follow a similar model to Australia, where a ban was introduced in December, and will cover platforms such as Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and X, the government said. Messaging apps like WhatsApp and Signal will not be included in the restrictions.

The government also said it plans to block children under 16 from live streaming and communicating with strangers on a wider range of online services, including gaming sites. The government said it would also “take a closer look at night-time curfews and endless scrolling breaks” for under-18s.

Not all parents favor the ban, and some experts have pointed out that most young people with social media accounts in Australia continue to use the platforms. Others criticized the announcement as hasty as Mr Starmer faces threats to his leadership from his own Labor party after narrowly losing local elections in May.

Ian Russell, a long-time online safety campaigner, criticized Mr Starmer for introducing what he called a “politically expedient blanket ban” rather than forcing social media platforms to remove harmful content. Mr Russell’s daughter Molly Russell was 14 when she took her own life in 2017 after viewing content related to suicide and self-harm.

But for many parents in Britain, the measures were a welcome step in addressing their concerns about the harmful effects of online content on their children, as well as concerns that childhoods have been fundamentally altered by unrestricted access to these platforms.

Justine Roberts, founder of Mumsnet, an online forum for parents, said in a statement that the announcement was “a huge moment for child safety online and for any parent who has felt helpless in the face of addictive technology designed to keep kids scrolling”.

British charity Smartphone Free Childhood called the social media ban “a hugely significant moment for children and families across the UK”.

“Parents have been fighting a losing battle for years against some of the most powerful companies in the world as smartphones and social media become an ever-increasing part of childhood,” Joe Ryrie, one of the charity’s founders, said in a statement. “Today feels like a turning point.

Little data is available to understand the impact of Australia’s ban, academics have pointed out, but after six months, early indications are that it has largely failed to keep young teenagers off the platforms. But some Australian parents say the law’s true impact may not be felt for years, when younger children who aren’t yet on social media may be left out because of the regulations.

Online safety experts have warned that the UK ban could be ineffective in stopping the potential harm, while failing to take into account some of the positive effects of social media on young people. Many acknowledge that it could still have a longer-term deterrent effect.

The tech industry is unlikely to respond positively. The Computer and Communications Industry Association, an international industry group, said in a statement that the ban would prevent teenagers from using platforms that also offer benefits.

“Hidden restrictions will stifle access to age-appropriate experiences with proper parental controls and encourage children to seek riskier unregulated alternatives,” Matthew Sinclair, the group’s senior UK director.

Mr Starmer acknowledged the new regulations did not mean no child would ever log onto social media again, but said the potential circumvention of the law was no reason not to introduce restrictions.

“They’re circumventing other laws, but we’re not saying, ‘Hey, a teenager managed to get drunk, so let’s not bother banning the sale of alcohol to children,'” he said. “We don’t do that, that would be absolutely ridiculous, so I just don’t accept that argument.”

Adam Satariano and Stephen Castle contributed reporting.