UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has announced on Monday, June 15, 2026, a landmark Legislative Proposal to ban children under 16 from using major social media platforms.
The proposed legislation which is expected to be introduced late this year with implementation slated for early 2027, aimed at prohibiting kids aged under 16 from using a range of social media apps, including Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and X, to protect them from harmful content and excessive screen time.
Alongside the social media use age restriction, Britain Government is planning to introduce further comprehensive measures to protect youth online, like live-streaming features across all platforms to reduce exposure to harmful content and exploitation; restricting who children can interact with on gaming and live streaming sites to prevent grooming. Apart from all these measures, there are plans to also restrict under-18s from accessing sexualised AI chatbots.
According to government, Britain is following a similar strategy as Australia, whose social media ban for kids went into effect in December 2025, but that it is adding more security measures.
There are however, exemptions such as Messaging Services like WhatsApp and Signal, as well as YouTube Kids. Starmer stressed that enforcement action will target technology companies, not the children.
Social media companies are legally required to verify that users are 16 or older before allowing access, and families will not face penalties if children bypass the restrictions. The burden and legal liability remain entirely with tech platforms.
With this proposed social media ban, UK will be joining countries that have adopted this measures, like France, Spain, Denmark, Thailand and South Korea
