Sir Keir Starmer has launched a consultation on enforcing an Australian-style social media ban for Britons under the age of 16.
The Prime Minister has faced growing pressure from Labour backbenchers and campaigners in recent weeks to put measures in place to limit mobile phone use for children and teenagers.
The proposed ban will see young Britons’ access to platforms such as Instagram, Facebook and TikTok restricted.
Sir Keir has also vowed to turn schools into “phone-free” areas and provide official guidance to parents on screen-time limits for children aged between five and 16.
Official guidance for parents of under-fives will be published in April, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) confirmed.
As part of the consultation, the DSIT said it will gather views from “parents, young people and civil society”.
It will also assess a range of possible measures, such as restricting potentially addictive app design features such as “streaks” and “infinite scrolling”.
The Prime Minister said on Monday: “We need to do more to protect children.
Sir Keir has also vowed to turn schools into ‘phone-free’ areas
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“That’s why we are looking at a range of options and saying no options are off the table.”
A final decision is on an Australian-style ban is expected to be taken by ministers in the summer.
But former Schools Minister Lord Nash said the Government’s consultation represented only more delay.
The Conservative peer said: “This announcement offers nothing for the hundreds of thousands of parents, teachers, medical professionals, senior police officers, national security experts and parliamentarians of all parties who have been calling for a raising of the age limit for social media.
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Lord Nash described young Britons’ social media use as a ‘catastrophic harm’
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GETTY“The Prime Minister must be in no doubt about the strength of feeling on this. The longer we delay, the more children we fail.”
Lord Nash tabled an amendment to the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill in the House of Lords, which would force social media platforms to block under 16s from their sites within one year of the legislation passing.
The ex-minister described young Britons’ social media use as a “catastrophic harm being done to a generation”, as he urged peers to back the amendment in a vote later this week.
The proposal has been supported by the National Education Union (NEU) and 61 Labour backbenchers, who have called on Sir Keir to take “urgent action”.
Kemi Badenoch branded the consultation as ‘more dither and delay’ from Labour
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PATory leader Kemi Badenoch warned the consultation was “more dither and delay” from Labour.
She said: “The Prime Minister is trying to copy an announcement that the Conservatives made a week ago, and still not getting it right.
“The harm social media is doing to children is undeniable, and the Conservatives would get children off these adult platforms altogether.
“By contrast, this is yet more dither and delay from Starmer and a Labour Party that have entirely run out of ideas.”