Starmer’s plan to ban under 16’s from social media

When it comes to information technology young people are the natives, their parents are the immigrants and their grandparents are the tourists.
The youngsters can and will run rings around us with their superior IT knowledge.
I would prefer to see the tech companies taking far greater measures to clamp down misuse of social media.
Of course parents, teachers, youth leaders, etc., can help by educating, especially regarding how the young persons use of the internet can put them in danger and also how their own misuse can come back to bite them in later life.

They have had quite a bit of tv coverage about this here and some kids are actually benefitting from it and playing more sport and getting involved in more outdoor activities. That works here because ,mostly, we have sunshine and good weather. Whether it would work in colder places I am not so sure.worth a go,though, isn’t it ?

As they say no use in shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted it’s the tech companies who can help not a ban and 16 is too old anyway I had a grandson out at work between 16/17

Nanna8 Iwas listening to an Australian spokesperson today saying it definitly isn’t working in Autralia and he was virtually laughing at us trying to follow suit

I agree with the Posters who are saying go for the tech companies.

I understand that WhatsApp is not included in the ban. I may be wrong, but I'd have thought that any bullying etc would be likely to be done via that, rather than in more public places such as FB. I don't know many people of that sort of age though, so I'm not well-placed to know.

Probably keeping children off TikTok and the like is probably a good thing, though. The trouble is, areas such as SM evolve all the time, so rules set now will be out of date very soon.

It's a start at least, and if it saves any teenagers lives then is well worth it.
I'd certainly like to see the tech companies controlled more though.

With nanna8 and Casdon

Another suggestion was making parents of under 16s responsible for what their children do on their phones . . .
That would mean that all parents have to be as technology literate as their children.

I think you’re right nanna8. It’s not going to work for current teenagers, but if it becomes embedded in parent thinking who now have younger children, longer term it will. I think as so many countries are going down the same route, the regulations internationally on the media and games companies will keep tightening, which can only be a good thing for children’s futures.

It works to a limited extent but I suppose if it improves things for a few it is worth it in the long run. It makes parents more aware of the dangers at least.

Think he’s targeting the wrong side of the problem.Of course the problems of what young folk see needs dealing with but it’s up to the billionaires who own it to get it sorted .Most young folk need their phones / laptops for schoolwork .
Our almost 7 year old regularly has online work set .

The children in Australia have found ways round their ban.

Go after the media companies.

You're quite right, it won't work.