Britain announces sweeping social media ban for under-16s

LONDON, June 15 (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Monday he would ban social media sites for under-16s and impose restrictions on gaming and livestreaming platforms, in some of the world's most far-reaching online restrictions to date.

The sweeping changes will reflect Britain's values, helping to protect children online while pushing back against the power of big technology companies, Starmer told a press conference.

"It is clear to me a full ban is the right choice," he said.

"This will change the conversations that parents have and the expectations of children over time. It will make a huge difference, it will make our children safer, it will make our children happier, it will give them more time, more security, more freedom to grow up, more opportunity".

As well as a ban on sites such as TikTok, Snapchat and Instagram, he said he would take action against gaming and livestreaming services which allow children to talk to strangers.

"Is there a situation in the offline world where you would just let your child pair up with a stranger, an adult that you don't know anything about? No, so we're taking action on that," Starmer said.

BAN IN PLACE BY NEXT SPRING?

The government already has the powers to take the first steps in any ban, he said, with regulation to follow by the end of the year and a prohibition in place around next spring.    

Britain has increasingly toughened its approach to tech companies in recent years, urging or forcing them to impose age verification, adapt their algorithms and, most recently, prevent children from circulating nude images taken on mobile phones.

But with a growing awareness of the mental health risks posed by children spending too much time online, Starmer has decided to go further after speaking to parents and considering evidence from Australia, which brought in a ban for under-16s last year. 

Starmer, who is likely to face a leadership challenge in the coming weeks, said people rightly expected action.  

Australia was the first country to ban social media for children under 16, blocking them last December from platforms including TikTok, Alphabet's YouTube and Meta's Instagram and Facebook.

Since then a raft of countries have said they are looking to regulate access to social media amid mounting concerns over the impact on children's health and safety.

EXTENSIVE CONSULTATIONS

Britain has consulted teachers, parents and young people on new restrictions, including a possible ban for under-16s, as well as curfews, app time limits and curbs on what the government has described as addictive design features.

It received more than 116,000 responses from parents, industry and young people. More than 83% of parents who responded said risks from social media outweighed benefits, while 90% backed a minimum age of 16 to access social media platforms. 

 While many parents and politicians back a ban, some psychologists and researchers have said there is no proof that it would work, and a group of school children in London told Reuters they had a conflicted relationship with the technology.