The UK government has proposed an overnight social media curfew for teenagers aged 16 and 17, aiming to improve their focus, sleep quality, and family life. The curfew would mean that apps such as Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube would be unavailable by default between midnight and 06:00, with "addictive" features like auto-play and infinite scroll disabled.
This proposal follows the announcement in June that under-16s in the UK would be banned entirely from a range of platforms. The new plans add to a complex mix of policies and measures from the government and tech firms intended to keep young people safe online. Some of these measures include optional parental controls over children's devices and child-only versions of popular sites such as YouTube. Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, has previously suggested that age verification should be handled by manufacturers of devices themselves, rather than by the onus being entirely on platforms.
Online safety minister Kanishka Narayan defended the government's approach, stating that the combination of the curfew and limiting auto-play features made Britain the most robust place in the world when it comes to regulating tech companies. However, some child safety charities and experts have cast doubt on the effectiveness or promise of a midnight curfew for older UK teens. "While we welcome these measures for older teens, this latest move is yet another piecemeal set of announcements, not the comprehensive plan for children's safety that's required," said Andy Burrows, chief executive of the Molly Rose Foundation.
Campaigners such as Ellen Roome, who believes her 14-year-old son Jools Sweeney died in an online challenge gone wrong in 2022, does not think the plan goes far enough. "I just think it's not good enough really just to have a product you can switch off, it's a bit like offering a 17-year-old a bottle of alcohol and then moving it slightly out of arms reach, they can just drag it back in," she told BBC Radio 4's Today programme. Some experts also worry that the curfew could harm vulnerable children by limiting their access to social media when they might need it most. "If it's a curfew on companies using push notifications to wake someone up in the night, absolutely have a curfew," said Prof Sonia Livingstone, an expert in children's digital rights at the London School of Economics. "But if it's a curfew that prevents a child in need of support or help or comfort reaching out to trusted sources in the middle of the night, I think that's quite harmful potentially."
The government has said it will aim to lay its new proposed measures in front of Parliament by the end of 2026, with the aim that they take effect alongside its social media ban for under-16s next spring. However, some have questioned the effectiveness of the proposed measures, with Laura Trott, the Conservative shadow education secretary, describing the plans as a "dog's dinner." "Either they think 16 and 17-year-olds should be on social media or they don't, but curfews they can simply switch off won't achieve anything," she said. The government has also announced plans to help children use AI chatbots safely, including by making providers introduce regular breaks for under-18s. The effectiveness of the proposed measures will be closely watched, and the UK's approach to regulating tech companies will be under scrutiny in the coming months.
Source: JOY
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