UK moves to ban under 16 from TikTok, YouTube, others

Britain is planning to ban under 16 children from using a range of social media apps including Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube Instagram, Facebook and X. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who announced this, said the development is meant to protect young people from harmful content and excessive screen time. Speaking at a news conference on Monday, the […]

Britain is planning to ban under 16 children from using a range of social media apps including Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube Instagram, Facebook and X.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who announced this, said the development is meant to protect young people from harmful content and excessive screen time.

Speaking at a news conference on Monday, the Prime Minister said the ban would not affect YouTube Kids or messaging services like WhatsApp and Signal.

The move is expected to take effect early next year, as it makes the U.K. part of a growing global movement to tighten online safety for children.

The prime minister said  he would fight back if technology companies resist the move, and acknowledged some teens would try to find their way around a ban.

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According to him, the decision would not be “compromised on the safety and happiness of our children”.

Starmer said, “Every parent can see it with their own eyes. Social media is making children unhappy. I’ve heard first hand from families crying out for change and we will do right by them.”

Australia, Canada, Brazil and Indonesia have introduced legislation or announced age-based restrictions or requirements for children’s access to social media.

Other countries including France, Spain, Denmark, Thailand and South Korea are studying or developing similar approaches.

Australia became the first country to bar under-16s from holding social media accounts, last year.

Platforms that fail to take reasonable steps to exclude children younger than 16 could be punished with multimillion-dollar fines.

The U.K. plans to follow the same social media ban model.

The prime minister also said he would go further than Australia’s measures.

He said the government would act to prevent strangers from contacting children on gaming and live streaming platforms.

Authorities are also considering additional measures including overnight curfews and breaks in infinite scrolling for those under 18.