Let me be absolutely clear from the outset: I give my full support to banning social media for children, and I will vote in favour of this measure.
I have long argued that social media is not a benign part of childhood. The iPhone is now over eighteen-years-old, and a child born today will never experience a world without smartphones embedded into daily life. This reality places serious responsibility on the government to decisively protect children from harm.
As parents, we know the truth: the online world, and social media in particular, is largely unfiltered, insufficiently regulated, and deliberately engineered to capture attention, manipulate emotion, and prioritise engagement over wellbeing. Children are uniquely vulnerable to these systems, and the consequences for mental health, sleep, learning, and development are increasingly clear.
This is not a new concern for me, and I have been consistently vocal since I was elected.
Last year, I invited more than 250 constituents who had contacted me about Smartphone-Free Schools to a panel event I organised alongside Smartphone Free Childhood. The panel brought together a consultant paediatrician, local headteachers, the regional Smartphone Free Childhood organiser, and Hampshire’s Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner. The conclusion was unanimous: government intervention is not only justified, but overdue, and should reflect approaches already being taken in allied countries such as Australia.
In Government, the Conservatives delivered. The Online Safety Act 2023 placed clear legal duties on platforms to protect children and to take age-appropriate steps to limit exposure to harmful content. However, technology continues to evolve at speed, including through advances in artificial intelligence. Stronger age limits, backed by robust age-verification, are therefore a crucial next step.
In Opposition, the Conservatives were the first to commit to a ban on social media access for under-16s. Both the Shadow Education Secretary, Laura Trott MP, and the Leader of the Opposition, Kemi Badenoch MP, have been clear that regulation must be focused, proportionate, and firmly centred on child safety, while avoiding unnecessary restrictions on adult freedoms.
I am glad that, under sustained pressure, the Government is now beginning to change its position and consult on this issue. However, it has taken far too long to reach this point. To be frank, the evidence is already there. Children do not need a consultation; they need protection. The Government should stop prevaricating and act. That is precisely what the Conservatives are proposing.
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