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Mother of murdered teen urges Prime Minister Support banning social media use by teenagers under 16.
Esther Ghey, whose 16-year-old daughter Brianna was murdered by two other teenagers in 2023, said the ban would be “an important step in protecting children online”.
A letter to Mr. Party Leader Keir StarmerKemi Badnock and Jazz Ed DavidMs Gay said her daughter suffered from a “social media addiction” and was “desperate to be famous on TikTok”, leaving her “constantly worried about who Brianna might be talking to online”.
She said: “She suffered from an eating disorder and engaged in self-harm, which was greatly exacerbated by the harmful content she consumed online.”
Her intervention comes as peers are expected to debate amendments to the Child Welfare and Schools Bill later this week that would require social media companies to block children under 16 from using their platforms.
The amendment has the support of the National Education Union (NEU) and 61 Labor MPs, who have written to the Prime Minister calling for “urgent action”.
North East Alliance general secretary Daniel Kebede said the amendment was a “crucial moment” and urged Sir Keir to show “leadership” and come out in support of the ban.
At a press conference on Monday morning, Sir Keir would not commit to supporting a ban but said the government was “considering a range of options” and “no option is off the table”.
He added that he had discussed the policy with the Australian Prime Minister Anthony AlbaneseHis government enacted a ban last year.
In her letter to party leaders, Gay said she was “speaking alongside many other parents who have lost children as a result of harm that started or was amplified online”.
She urged them to support the ban, saying: “No parent should have to suffer the consequences of a system that fails to protect their children.”
However, over the weekend, 42 child protection charities and online safety organizations issued a joint statement warning that a blanket ban on social media would not deliver the needed improvements in children’s safety and wellbeing and would only address “the symptoms, not the problem”.
Instead, the group said, the government should strengthen online safety bills to require platforms to strongly enforce risk-based age restrictions.
Baroness Hilary Cass, a paediatrician in the House of Lords, said she understood the charity’s rationale but believed it would be better to “start with a presumption of ban and only allow apps that are developed safely and do not target children using harmful algorithms”.
she told press association Otherwise, there will be “reliance on large U.S. tech companies to comply with security requirements, but so far this has not been enough.”
Meanwhile, the Liberal Democrats are calling for a cinematic age rating for social media, with some platforms legally restricted to users aged over 16.
Party leader Sir Ed said the proposal was “a sensible approach that would allow young people to benefit from the best of social media… while properly dealing with the real harm it can cause”.
Responding to the Lib Dem proposals in the House of Commons on Monday, Education Secretary Bridget Philipson said: “We will look carefully at any sensible proposals to ensure we can keep children safe online.
“I do recognize that wider issues around behavior are a factor in teachers’ experiences, but also recognize some of the wider pressures, including those around safeguarding.”