Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Social Media: Children and Young People

Wednesday 18 March 2026 · 5 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 2 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • The Department is partnering with UK Youth and Volunteering Matters to run seven youth-led events across the UK to gather direct input from young people.
  • The Secretary of State disagrees with the proposal to repeal the Online Safety Act, stating it would expose children to risks and undermine their protections.
  • The Government is designing consultation questions tailored for different age groups to better understand the issues related to social media use by children and young people.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Jacob Collier Lab Burton and Uttoxeter
Culture, Media & Sport Children & Families
Context

The question stems from the government's efforts to consult with children and young people about their experiences and views regarding social media.

Question

What steps her Department is taking to engage with children and young people on social media use. There are strong and differing views across this House and the country on a social media ban for under-16s. Indeed, when I have spoken to young people, that has come out, and there was not a strong feeling in my old school, de Ferrers academy, about this.

Answer from Liz Kendall

We really want to hear directly from young people themselves—we have already had over 1,700 responses—but especially from children. We are partnering with UK Youth and Volunteering Matters to run a series of seven youth-led events across England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. We will also pilot other potential interventions, including overnight curfews and daily screentime limits, working with children and parents to see what works in practice and its impact on family life.

Answered
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Q2 Naushabah Khan Lab Gillingham and Rainham
Culture, Media & Sport Children & Families
Context

Parents in Gillingham and Rainham support the Government's efforts to keep children safe online. There is concern about a pledge from Reform to repeal the Online Safety Act.

Question

Does the Secretary of State agree that repealing the Online Safety Act, as Reform has pledged to do, would recklessly expose our children to online predators and leave them without the protections they deserve?

Answer from Liz Kendall

I think the party that wants to repeal the Online Safety Act puts children at risk. Its Members do not stand for British values and they do not stand for British law; Labour Members do.

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Q3 Jacob Collier Lab Burton and Uttoxeter
Social Care Children & Families
Context

There are strong and differing views across the House and country on a social media ban for under-16s. The questioner has spoken to young people who have different views.

Question

Can the Secretary of State say what engagement she will have with young people, so that decisions about their lives are directly fed into this consultation?

Answer from Liz Kendall

We really want to hear directly from young people themselves—we have already had over 1,700 responses—but especially from children. We are partnering with UK Youth and Volunteering Matters to run a series of seven youth-led events across England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. We will also pilot other potential interventions, including overnight curfews and daily screentime limits, working with children and parents to see what works in practice and its impact on family life.

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Q4 Julian Lewis Con New Forest East
Culture, Media & Sport
Context

Some objections to a social media ban for young people are based on the fact that it would create a cliff edge, where they have no involvement and then total involvement. The questioner suggests encouraging children to use non-interactive internet services.

Question

Does she agree with me that one way to minimise that danger is to encourage children to use the internet, which is not interactive, as that will gradually acclimatise them for the day when they are able to use interactive services more safely?

Answer from Liz Kendall

The right hon. Gentleman is always helpful—well, not always, but on this occasion he has been very helpful. The cliff-edge argument has been made to me personally by the NSPCC, the Molly Rose Foundation, the Internet Watch Foundation and others, and it is one that we should take seriously.

Partly answered

How: We Should Take Seriously

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Q5 Vikki Slade Lib Dem Mid Dorset and North Poole
Children & Families
Context

The questioner visited Lytchett Minster school and Queen Elizabeth's school, holding a session to ask young people about their views on social media ban. The sixth form students supported the ban while younger children did not.

Question

How will the Government tailor the questions for younger children and older children so that we get a true understanding of the problem?

Answer from Liz Kendall

I would love it if the hon. Lady sent me a report or a note on that, because alongside the consultation, which is specifically designed for children and young people, many of us in this House are talking to schools.

How: Do Send In Those Views, I Promise I Will Read Them All

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