Raise the Minimum Social Media Age to 16

Over the last year or so, countless parents, carers and young people have been in contact with me about the impact of social media and restricting its use for under 16s. I 100% understand these concerns about the risks children face online and the impact of social media on their wellbeing. Many children experience effects on their mental health, concentration and self-esteem, and parents across the country are increasingly concerned about harmful content, excessive screen time, and online safety.

Our Government has now consulted on how best to address these risks, with the consultation receiving over 116,000 responses. I held a roundtable here in Redcar with parents, students from a broad range of schools aged 11-18, carers, educators and community workers to get to the bottom of the changes that people actually want to see. I was so pleased to see such a great turnout, as I was able to feed this into the consultation directly and ensure that Redcar had its say in any changes.

On a national scale, nine out of ten parents who responded to the consultation said they wanted an outright ban, alongside strong backing from wider surveys – this was really in line with what I found from the roundtable and communication with other constituents, so I’m not surprised that it was reflected nationally too.

For this reason, I fully support banning social media companies from providing services to under-16s. The policy will be based on the same model as the one used in Australia and will apply to major social media platforms that use algorithms and allow users to share content. This will include platforms such as Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and X. Importantly, services such as educational platforms, online shopping and music streaming will not be affected. A small number of carefully defined exemptions will also be kept under review.

Ministers also plan to restrict a wider range of features and functions that may pose risks to young people. They will ban livestreaming for under-16s, as well as communication with strangers. To avoid a cliff edge, these features will be switched off by default for those aged 16 and 17. Artificial intelligence chatbots were a key concern for parents, and our Government will act to ban those that offer sexualised content. Further measures are also being considered, so I’ll be following these very closely.

The Technology Secretary will present regulations before the Commons for a vote on a ban before the end of this year, with measures expected to take effect in early 2027. There is still more to do, but I believe this announcement represents landmark action that will help give children the freedom to be children again, so they can have the best possible start in life. Thank you again to everyone who contacted me on this and contributed to the consultation - your efforts have made a world of difference.