Bereaved parents urge MPs to vote for social media ban for under-16s
Bereaved parents have called on lawmakers to support an immediate ban on under-16s using social media as MPs prepare to vote for the first time on proposed restrictions.
MPs will debate the Lords-backed ban for the first time on Monday, which proposes a default ban for young people within 12 months of the Child Welfare and Schools Act becoming law.
However, the government has proposed replacing the amendment with more far-reaching powers and allowing restrictions such as social media curfews to be introduced, depending on the outcome of a consultation launched last week.
23 parents whose children have died due to social media are calling on MPs to reject the government’s consultation and instead reverse a default blockade proposed by the Lords to prevent further delays.
Parents were joined by a coalition of organizations including the National Education Union, Mumsnet, Health Professionals for Safer Screens and Safe Screens, calling on MPs in parliament to immediately support the ban.
Esther Ghey, the mother of slain teenager Brianna Ghey, said lawmakers should support the changes this week “to stop the damage without delay.”
“Children on social media, including gaming platforms, are currently being exploited, radicalized, harmed emotionally and physically, and in the most tragic cases, young lives are being lost,” he said.
“Brianna was one of those kids. Parents across the country are crying out for help as they watch the devastating impact these platforms can have on young people.
“We cannot afford any further delays when the damage continues every day.”
She is one of the parents who sent a letter to MPs last week warning mums and dads “they can’t regulate billion-dollar tech companies from their kitchen tables”.
Rather than backing the strict age limit proposed in the House of Lords, the government is pushing for more flexible powers.
If MPs approve this change to the Child Welfare and Schools Bill, ministers will gain new power to impose social media curfews or restrict screen time, following a consultation launched last week to decide on definitive action.
Lord Nash, who steered the proposed default ban in the House of Lords, said the government’s changes would only give big tech companies time to “counteract the actions”.
“The incredibly brave parents of the 23 young people who lost their lives due to social media have told MPs that any further delay is nothing more than an opportunity for big tech companies to counteract the action,” he said.
“MPs can listen to these calls to action and vote for my cross-party amendment to raise the age limit for the most harmful platforms to 16 within 12 months and pass it into law before the summer.
“Or they can gamble on a consultation whose age is not fixed and whose outcome is not guaranteed. Just further delay while children continue to suffer. The choice could not be clearer; I ask every MP to vote for cross-party change today.”
The online safety advisory, launched last Monday, is exploring a variety of issues, including whether social media platforms should have minimum age requirements and whether platforms should turn off addictive features such as autoplay.
Technology secretary Liz Kendall, who launched the consultation, pledged to “create a digital world that gives young people the childhood they deserve and prepares them for the future”.
Responding last week, a government spokesman wrote that “short and sharp three months of consultations” would allow ministers to “hear all perspectives, build consensus where possible and then act decisively”.
