Rishi Sunak, the UK Prime Minister, is considering banning under-16s from using social media as part of a raft of measures being considered to limit children’s exposure to harmful online content.
While the Online Safety Act brought in new controls in the UK earlier this year – such as requiring social media platforms to precent and quickly remove illegal content or face large fines – the government is reportedly thinking of going further. A consultation is reportedly being prepared for January to look at the evidence of the harms social media can cause to young teens. Bloomberg has reported that banning under-16s from social media and improving parental controls will be discussed.
Currently, children aged 13 can access social media sites such as TikTok, Instagram and Facebook – although this isn’t rigorously enforced, and many younger children have accounts.
But the government has distanced itself from the speculation of a ban, saying that the prefer to empower parents rather than crackdown. A spokesperson added that more research into the effects of social media on teenagers is needed before the government makes any decisions.
Separately, schools minister Damian Hinds has called on Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, to rethink its plan to bring in encrypted messaging, over features for children’s safety. The National Crime Agency has said that bringing it in would make it harder to stop paedophiles.
