Less trust in Government to decide appropriate platforms for children – survey

It received around 116,000 responses, making it the second-largest government consultation in history after a consultation on equal marriage in 2012.

An Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) survey of more than 2,000 adults, carried out over Wednesday and Thursday, found 51% trust parents to decide which platforms are appropriate, 49% trust an independent regulator, 22% trust schools, 16% trust technology companies and 15% trust Government ministers.

The polling, conducted by YouGov, also found 44% support banning under-16s from social media while 39% prefer tighter regulation.

Just over one in 10 participants said social media should not be banned or more strictly regulated.

Exposure to age-inappropriate content such as nudity, exposure to strangers and algorithms learning user behaviour and recommending content were among the harmful features highlighted.

The IPPR is calling for a blanket ban on social media for under-16s, but not just to protect children from harmful content.

Avnee Morjaria, associate director at the IPPR and a former teacher, said: “Having spent years teaching in secondary schools, I saw first-hand how childhood has changed.

“More and more of children’s lives are now lived through screens. Previous generations had the freedom to make mistakes, experiment and move on. Today’s children are growing up under constant scrutiny, where every insecurity can be amplified and every mistake permanently recorded.

“A blanket social media ban for under-16s is the only effective option. Not because technology is inherently bad, but because we are allowing childhood itself to be shaped for the worse by algorithms.

“Childhood should be defined by real-world experiences, friendships and opportunities to grow, not by an endless competition for attention and approval. The greatest loss of the smartphone age is not privacy; it’s childhood itself.”

The National Education Union (NEU) has also called on the Prime Minister to enact a ban.

An NEU survey of 2,000 adults, conducted by Censuswide between June 2 and 5, found 42% of respondents think introducing a ban would create a positive legacy for Sir Keir, with seven in 10 adults saying they support raising the age of social media access to 16.

Daniel Kebede, general secretary of the NEU, said: “This is Keir Starmer’s moment of truth.

“The public backs action, parents have spoken, and the evidence is overwhelming. Anything less than a full ban would mean caving in to Big Tech.

“He has heard from parents and families living with the consequences of online harm, and he has heard from Big Tech lobbyists – now he must decide whose side he is on. There can be no more delay and no more half-measures. The Government must act to ban social media for under-16s.”

But some groups have said that a ban may not be the appropriate instrument to tackle a wide spread of social media harms.

The Molly Rose Foundation, set up in memory of 14-year-old Molly Russell who took her own life in 2017 after viewing harmful content online, has warned an Australia-style ban might offer only “the perception of security”.

Polling published in April found three in five Australian children aged between 12 and 15 still have access to one or more online account which should have been restricted as a result of the law, which came into effect last year.

The Children’s Coalition for Online Safety, led by the 5Rights Foundation and including groups such as the NSPCC and Girlguiding, has also demanded a broader overhaul of technology companies’ business models and product design choices that risk keeping young users hooked.

In a joint statement, 25 organisations called for a ban on targeted advertising and manipulative design features, a ban on personalised services for under-13s and default safety protections for under-16s with penalties for firms that fall short, stronger regulation of AI systems including child-focused risk assessments and the creation of an independent online safety commissioner.

A spokesperson for the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology said: “We have been clear that we want to get this right and ensure children can grow up safer online.

“That’s why we launched a national conversation on the future of children’s online safety, which received over 110,000 responses – one of the largest consultations under this Government.

“We will set out our next steps imminently, and we will do so in a way that is proportionate, evidence-led and puts children’s safety at the heart of our approach.”