New Delhi, January 18 (IANS). The Australian government banned social media for children under 16 about a month ago, which attracted the attention of the whole world. It was also appreciated in many countries. There are many other countries in the world which are thinking of banning social media for children. The next name in this list is from Britain.
According to media reports, there is discussion in the British Parliament about taking a big step in this regard next week. The House of Lords is expected to vote on changes to the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill. This will include a social media ban for children under 16 years of age.
Daisy Greenwell’s Smartphone Free Childhood (SFC) launched an email campaign this week, sending over 100,000 emails to local UK MPs. The SFC template email called on the government to set “age-appropriate limits for children”.
Greenwell said, “We consistently see that the more time kids spend on smartphones and social media, the worse their mental well-being. If these platforms are no longer available, the network effect is lost and young people can reconnect with each other and the real world.”
British PM Keir Starmer also supported this and said that he is studying this ban issued in Australia. “We need to better protect children from social media,” he said.
“All options are on the table about what further protections we can provide, whether it’s children under 16 on social media or an issue I’m very concerned about, children under five and screen time. Children as young as four in their first year of school are spending far too much time on screens,” PM Starmer said last week.
–IANS
KK/VC
