The UK PM prepares to announce a ban in the next week.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is set to announce a ban on the use of social media for under-16s, following a public consultation on the effects of the platform’s features on young people.
Britain would not be the first nation to impose such a ban, with Australia and Greece introducing blanket restrictions on social network use for children, and other platforms with addictive features.
The online consultation revealed huge popular support for tighter restrictions, with 89% of the 9,500 parents who responded supporting a legal “minimum age of access”.
The backlash against tech platforms comes amid a number of legal cases against social media platforms for child safety concerns, particularly regarding addictive features and a lack of guard rails against harmful content – with Ofcom reporting that YouTube and TikTok are “still not safe enough”.
As the reported ban nears closer, children’s commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza urged the PM to extend the ban to all under-18s, and to also include any platform with addictive features, not just social media.
“I am calling for all online services – not just social media platforms, but gaming sites and any platforms that make use of harmful features and functionalities – to be banned from accessing children, until they can prove that they are designed in a way that will protect children’s safety and wellbeing.”
The commissioner argued that this ban should be applied beyond social media platforms to include games, AI platforms, and “risky” online services – alongside those with “persuasive design” features like autoplay, infinite scrolling, as well as popularity metrics, such as the “like” button and count, and functions which allowed users to share their location and livestream.
“This means tackling the features that drive addiction, expose children to harmful content, or enable contact from strangers. The responsibility lies with companies to demonstrate that their services protect children’s safety and wellbeing. Until they do this, they should not be allowed into their lives,” the commissioner told the Telegraph.
The PM is also expected to announce a crackdown on online platforms, with tech companies required to install software which would make it impossible for children to share inappropriate images.
If businesses like Apple and Google don’t comply with these requirements within three months, the upcoming legislation could see tech firms face fines or restrictions on the sales of phones to children, or even criminal sanctions.
