The Children’s Commissioner for England, Dame Rachel de Souza, said more must be done to protect children from the “wild west of social media” at a recent appearance at the Education Select Committee.
Speaking yesterday before the Committee, on which Caroline Voaden, MP for South Devon sits, Dame de Souza set out the current landscape in stark terms, noting that by as young as eleven or twelve, children are exposed to serious anti-women porn and extreme violence, including beheadings.
It’s little wonder then that a government minister confirmed this morning that a ban on social media for under-16s in the UK is “on the table”. Speaking on the Today programme, on BBC Radio 4, technology secretary, Peter Kyle, said he’ll “do what it takes” to protect children online, but stopped short of supporting a ban on smartphones.
This is despite growing evidence of the harm smartphones are doing to children in the UK. According to research from Parentkind, 1 in 7 children now spend more time on a smartphone or tablet than they do at school, while separate research found that 59% of parents believe their kids are addicted to their devices. A quarter of three-year-olds now have a smartphone and spend up to three hours a day on it.
Last month, Caroline Voaden announced her support for the Safer Phones Bill, which would curb smartphone use among children, and earlier today, attended a briefing from health and education experts about the detrimental impact smartphones and social media are having on young people across the UK.
Reacting to the debate, Caroline Voaden, MP for South Devon and member of the Education Select Committee, says: “As legislators, it is our duty first and foremost to protect our constituents, and that especially goes for our children. It’s becoming increasingly clear that smartphone use is harming children and exposing them to harmful material at a shockingly young age.
“Listening to the Children’s Commissioner only reiterated why the Safer Phones Bill is absolutely needed. When it comes to our children’s safety, a precautionary approach must be taken.
“The technology minister says there is a lack of firm, peer-reviewed evidence on the impact smartphones are having on children. While I accept that, the anecdotal evidence is overwhelming, and the risks are simply too big to wait for such studies that may take years. We must limit smartphone usage now until we can prove they are safe.”
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