By Sam Tabahriti and Muvija M
LONDON, April 15 (Reuters) – British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told social media companies on Thursday to take responsibility for children’s safety on their platforms and meet parents’ demands for credible protection rather than “tweaks around the edges”.
He said he wanted to hear what actions the platforms were going to take because “right now, social media is putting our children at risk” at the start of a meeting with executives from Meta, Snap, Google, TikTok and X.
Starmer’s government has ramped up scrutiny of social media companies, saying children were being exposed to harm online without clear accountability, and has pledged to act to limit the impact of such apps on sleep, family life and schoolwork.
He said the companies had introduced some protections – such as disabling autoplay on YouTube for children and giving parents greater control over screen time, including curfews – but he wanted them to go further.
“Companies have to grip this and work with us to do better by British children and to demonstrate credibly and quickly how these products can be made appropriate for children,” Starmer said.
He highlighted growing concerns about escalating bullying and social pressures, as well as the lack of clear boundaries between school and home life.
“It’s clear to me that parents aren’t asking us for tweaks at the edges,” he told the executives, who were not named by the government.
“They’re asking us whether a system that clearly isn’t working for children should be allowed to continue at all.”
Britain is consulting until next month on whether to restrict children’s access to social media, including a possible ban for under-16s, as well as curfews, app time limits and curbs on what it described as addictive design features.
Australia last year became the first country to ban social media for children under 16, with European countries considering similar measures.
French President Emmanuel Macron is due to push for a coordinated approach among European Union leaders on banning social media for minors.
(Reporting by Sam Tabahriti and Muvija M, Editing by Paul Sandle and Alex Richardson)
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