Millions of children in the UK will be forced off social media from spring 2027, the prime minister has announced, in a sweeping crackdown that tech companies warn will push teenagers towards more harmful platforms.
Speaking at a Downing Street press conference, Sir Keir Starmer said apps including TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook and X would become inaccessible for under-16s. “We hope to pass regulation before Christmas,” he said, with the ban taking effect in spring 2027.
“UK PM Starmer announces ban on social media for under-16s from spring 2027, drawing criticism from tech firms.”
The government has not yet released a full list of affected platforms, but confirmed that messaging apps such as WhatsApp and Signal will be exempt, along with online gaming platform Roblox and YouTube Kids. However, certain features — including livestreaming and the ability for strangers to contact children — will be restricted for under-16s.
For 16 and 17-year-olds, the government will also look at restrictions on functionalities such as infinite scroll and curfews. Intimate and sexual chats with AI will be banned for under-18s.
“Social media is making children unhappy, it’s making it easier for bullies to harass and abuse them, and it could even be harming their mental health,” Starmer said. “I am not prepared to compromise on the safety and happiness of our children, and that is why this ban must happen, and why this ban will happen.”
The prime minister, who had previously been sceptical about a ban, acknowledged the move was not cost-free. “This is not something I do lightly, and I will not present it as cost-free, as if social media has [brought no] benefits to young people, because clearly that is wrong. But government is always about choices, and it’s clear to me that a total ban is the right choice.”
Tech giants immediately hit back. Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, said a ban risked “isolating teens from online communities and information, and driving them to unregulated alternatives that lack built-in protections and parental controls.” YouTube said in a statement: “Blanket bans push kids out of such curated, supervised, beneficial experiences and towards anonymous, less-safe services.” Snapchat added: “An outright ban that disconnects teens from those relationships doesn’t make them safer – it may simply push them to less safe platforms.”
Campaigners welcomed the move. Joe Ryrie, co-founder of the Smartphone Free Childhood campaign group, said: “This social media ban won’t solve every problem overnight, but it is a major step forward. Millions of children will now get a few more years to grow up before entering online environments that were never designed with their wellbeing in mind.”
The ban is part of an international trend of governments restricting social media access for young people, going further than a similar law enacted earlier this year in Australia. Allies of Starmer said that if he is ousted as prime minister in the coming weeks, this will form part of his political legacy.