Starmer poised to ban under-16s from social media
PM drops opposition to Australian-style age restrictions and wants further protections for children online
CHARLES HYMAS, MATTHEW FIELD, TIM SIGSWORTH, GENEVIEVE HOLL-ALLEN
Sir Keir Starmer is ready to impose a social media ban on under-16s.
The Prime Minister had previously expressed scepticism about copying Australian age restrictions on social media platforms after warnings that a ban could push teenagers on to less-regulated sites.
But he has now dropped his opposition to the proposal and is open to legislation that would force the social media companies to bar under-16s from their platforms.
On Thursday, Sir Keir said: “We need to better protect children from social media. We’re looking at what’s happening in Australia, but all options are on the table in relation to what further protections we can put in place, whether that’s under-16s on social media, all options on the table.”
No 10 also signalled that the Prime Minister would not stand in the way of a Conservative amendment to the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, to be voted on next week, that would bring in an Australian-style ban.
One policy expert close to No 10 said: “This has clearly become a live issue for No 10. If you had a free vote tomorrow, 70 per cent of MPs would vote yes. It would be very popular with the public.”
Last weekend Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative Party leader, said the Tories would block under-16s from social media if they won the next election.
Her calls were backed by Andy Burnham, the Mayor of Greater Manchester, who has been tipped to challenge Sir Keir for the Labour leadership.
Wes Streeting, the Health Secretary, said he was “in favour of action” over a potential ban on social media for under-16s. He said social media had been “unleashed without properly understanding the consequences”.
Anthony Albanese, the Australian prime minister, introduced q world-first law last year, banning young people from platforms such as Facebook, X, Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok.
If the Tory amendment is passed in the House of Lords next week, it will go to the House of Commons for a vote.
The Telegraph understands that a number of options are being considered as well as a total ban.
One option is a ban on VPNs for children. VPNs – virtual private networks – allow users to create an encrypted connection between a device and the internet. They can be used to mask an individual’s physical location and online behaviour.
[…]
Smartphone Free Childhood, a parenting campaign group, said it had gathered 100,000 letters to MPs urging them to back the ban.
The change in approach is reflected in a series of Government appointments of people who support further restrictions on social media.
The Telegraph: continue reading
Featured image: Alamy
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