More than 60 Labour MPs urge Starmer to ban social media for under-16s
More than 60 Labor MPs have called on the prime minister to ban under-16s from accessing social media platforms.
In an open letter to Sir Keir Starmer on Sunday, 61 MPs said “successive governments” had “done too little to protect young people from unregulated, addictive social media platforms”.
They urged him to follow the example of Australia, which introduced a ban in December. Many other countries are said to be considering similar legislation.
Sir Keir did not rule out introducing the ban, saying “all options are on the table”. The House of Lords will vote next week on a Liberal Democrat proposal to restrict social media platforms based on movie-style age ratings.
The letter, which includes the signatures of a number of committee chairs and former frontbenchers, said many constituents had contacted MPs to express their concerns about the effects of social media on young people.
He says: “We hear the same message across all our constituencies: children are anxious, unhappy and unable to focus on learning. They are not developing the social skills they need to thrive and they do not have the experience to prepare them for adulthood.”
MPs noted that “governments around the world have recognized the seriousness of the crisis and taken action”, drawing attention to Australia’s ban and adding that “Denmark, France, Norway, New Zealand and Greece are expected to follow suit”.
They wrote that Britain “runs the risk of being left behind” on this issue.
LetterThe deal, thought to have been organized by Plymouth Moor View MP Fred Thomas, was signed by education select committee chair Helen Hayes, former whip Vicky Foxcroft, former education secretary Catherine McKinnell and former shadow cabinet minister Richard Burgon and others.
This is the latest example of political pressure being put on the government to ban social media.
Last week Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch said her party would impose a ban on under-16s if it wins the next election.
Meanwhile, the Liberal Democrats’ proposal, which will soon be considered in the Lords, envisages social media platforms being rated according to age ratings, as in movies.
According to the plan, platforms that use addictive algorithmic feeds or contain “inappropriate content” will be restricted to users over the age of 16, while sites containing “uncensored violence or pornography” will be exclusive to adults only.
Various children’s charities and online safety organizations have voiced their opposition to a blanket social media ban on under-16s.
The NSPCC, Childnet and suicide prevention charity Molly Rose Foundation were among 42 individuals and organizations arguing on Saturday that a ban would be the “wrong solution”.
“This will create a false sense of security that will cause both children and the threats to them to migrate to other areas online,” they wrote in a joint statement.
“Blanket bans on social media, however well-intentioned, will fail to deliver the improvements in children’s safety and well-being that they urgently need.”
Officials stated that the existing law should be “robustly enforced” to ensure that social media sites, personalized games and artificial intelligence chatbots are not accessible to people under the age of 13, and argued that all social media platforms should have evidence-based blocks for features considered risky for children of different ages.
Ian Russell, father of 14-year-old Molly Russell, who committed suicide in 2017 after viewing suicide and self-harm content online, said the government should enforce existing laws rather than “applying sledgehammer techniques”.
Online safety campaigner who founded the Molly Rose Foundation in her daughter’s honor He told the BBC News Programme the ban could have “unintended consequences” and “cause more problems”.
If you are affected by the issues raised in this article, you can find help and support at: BBC Action Line.
