UK signals broader tech regulations beyond U-16 social media ban

The U.K. government’s upcoming ban on social media for children under 16 is only a “staging post” toward a more interventionist regulatory framework for technology companies, Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has warned.

Speaking to British daily The Guardian ahead of a Labour Party conference, Nandy vowed to expand state oversight of digital platforms beyond the restrictions set to take effect by March.

“We shouldn’t accept that this is the end,” Nandy said. “This is a staging post to what must be a very active interventionist state, policing and regulating the online space so that people are safe.”

The upcoming ban targets high-risk apps, including TikTok, Snapchat, YouTube, and Instagram. Subsequent measures aimed at 16- and 17-year-olds will restrict features such as infinite scrolling, harmful recommendation algorithms, and weak age-verification checks.

A public consultation on the ban drew over 116,000 responses, with 85% of parents agreeing that the risks of social media outweigh the benefits, The Guardian reported.

Comparing digital platforms to physical public areas, Nandy criticized the necessity of removing children from social media altogether.

“If we were in a situation where we were saying our town centers are now so unsafe that we’ve decided that every child is going to have to stay in their bedrooms, people would rightly be up in arms,” Nandy said.

“How have we got to a point where we’re saying these social media sites are so harmful and dangerous that we cannot conceive of any way of protecting our children except to remove them altogether? This ends now,” she added.

Nandy highlighted a “step change” in policy under Prime Minister Andy Burnham, who took office in July, succeeding Keir Starmer.

She noted the U.K. is willing to diverge from Washington on technology policy, citing plans to guarantee established broadcasters greater prominence on platforms like YouTube and TikTok.

“That is a difference of opinion with the U.S. administration, but we do reserve the right to take a different approach,” Nandy said, adding that digital infrastructure should not be “entirely outsourced to the private sector.”

“It’s not acceptable to outsource this to Musk or anybody else,” she said, revealing that representatives from X failed to attend a recent meeting she called with tech executives.

Nandy also acknowledged enforcement challenges with the regulatory body Ofcom regarding the Online Safety Act, saying, “Laws are only as good as the ability to enforce them.”

She also expressed support for a proposal by BBC Director-General Matt Brittin to develop a “public service algorithm” to compete with major tech platforms.

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