Labour will not impose a total social media ban on under-16s, technology industry insiders believe.
Social media firms are preparing for restrictions on features deemed to be “addictive or unsafe”, including infinite scrolling, autoplay, and location sharing for under-16s.
Australia banned a number of platforms for under-16s completely, but research has suggested the majority of youths are still using social media despite the law coming into force in December.
There are said to be three options on the table after a consultation on a ban closed on Tuesday.
One of these is believed to be a full “Australia-style” ban on social media for under-16s.
The second option – the one with which insiders believe the Government will move forward – would ban “functionalities” including endless scrolls, algorithms which drive content to children, autoplay, livestreaming and “streaks”, which reward daily use of an app.
Another option would go further than Australia by combining both the ban and restrictions on “functionalities”, and tougher age-verification requirements on social media firms to ensure children are denied access.
Sir Keir Starmer met with bereaved parents who lost children after they viewed harmful content online on Tuesday, including social media safety advocate Ellen Roome and Esther Ghey, mother of Brianna Ghey.
Esther Ghey (left) mother of Brianna Ghey and Ruth Moss, mother of Sophie Parkinson, were among the bereaved to meet the Prime Minister
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He told those parents he planned to unveil the plans “within weeks”, after 70,000 responses to the public consultation are analysed.
Ruth Moss, whose 13-year-old daughter killed herself after viewing suicide videos online, said the Prime Minister listened to parents who “wanted a public commitment to act and act in a big way”.
And Ian Russell, whose 14-year-old daughter Molly also took her own life after being bombarded with suicide content, said Sir Keir had a chance to leave a legacy.
He told The Telegraph: “Keir perhaps listened to the bereaved parents more as a parent himself than a Prime Minister. Everyone implored him to take bold action against online harms like no prime minister has done before.
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Parents whose children died after viewing content on the internet gathered at No10 on Tuesday
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“Time will tell if he has listened and will follow the growing consensus to target harmful product features rather than penalise children and young people with an ineffective global ban. Whatever happens next politically, Keir has a chance to leave a legacy. No one yet knows if he will take it.”
The Prime Minister has been insistent on acting quickly to implement social media restrictions for under-16s, and is expected to outline the Government’s proposals before the Makerfield-by-election on June 18.
Calls for a ban are almost overwhelming, with even the Conservatives falling into line on demands for more restrictions despite warnings of authoritarianism and censorship.
Sir Keir’s leadership rival Wes Streeting was one of the biggest advocates for a social media ban within Government and has continued to call for restrictions after resigning.
He said a ban must be the “start, not the end”, adding that social media should be “treated like tobacco”.
Mr Streeting’s intervention came alongside a report from the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges which also compared social media to smoking.
That report said there was “overwhelming conensus” among its members that there was a link between using devices and health harms.
The same report acknowledged the evidence for this was minimal.
Sir Keir met with bereaved parents on Tuesday, who told him this was the oppurtunity to ‘leave a legacy’
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Christopher Snowdon, of the Institute of Economic Affairs, has warned that “trying to ban social media for under-16s leads to a minority of kids not using social media, thereby becoming even less popular and more ostracised, while the majority use VPNs and unregulated apps”.
He added: “Parents like me have effective controls to use on teenagers’ phones.
“Politicians want to ban social media because people are rude to them on it. The old media want to ban it because it’s competition.
“They will not stop with the under-16s. Resist it while you can.”
One tech insider told The Times social media platforms were seeing the “writing on the wall”, with Europe looking to restrict the internet for more than 65 million people.
“While the platforms are opposed to categorical social media bans, they don’t think that the UK is going in that direction,” the insider added.
Tech firms have argued against a ban similar to Australia’s, which excludes some gaming platforms.
One Labour backbencher, who had been pushing for greater restrictions, said they were not “wedded” to the Australia model of social media, admitting it was “more complicated than just yes or no on a ban”.
A Downing Street spokeswoman said: “We’re determined to act quickly, but we will do so in a way that is effective, enforceable and genuinely keeps children safe.
“We will take the time needed to learn measures that are effective in practice and can actually be enforced, rather than rushing into something that doesn’t deliver the change that families want.”