Starmer says UK will ban under-16s from major social media platforms by spring 2027

Keir Starmer said the UK government wants to bring in a ban on social media use for under-16s by spring 2027, setting up one of the country’s biggest online-safety interventions for children.

The prime minister’s comments confirm the government is moving ahead with a plan aimed at major user-to-user platforms, including TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat, YouTube, Facebook and X. Messaging services such as WhatsApp and Signal are expected to be excluded.

Ofcom, the UK communications regulator, says it is ready to enforce the new rules. The government says age verification will be part of the system used to stop under-16s accessing the covered platforms.

What the plan covers

The policy is aimed at services where people post, share and interact publicly rather than private messaging tools. That is why messaging apps are understood to be outside the ban, while large social networks and video platforms are inside it.

Coverage today also says the package goes beyond an age limit for children. The government plans tighter restrictions for 16- and 17-year-olds, plus additional limits on livestreaming and on some AI chatbots described as romantic companions or sexually explicit services for under-18s.

That wider scope means the announcement is not just about one age threshold. It is part of a broader attempt to narrow young people’s access to high-risk online features that ministers say can expose them to harm.

Why ministers are pushing it

Ministers are framing the move as a child-protection measure in response to concerns about online harm, screen use and pressure from major platforms on teenagers.

The government says consultation responses showed broad support from parents for a minimum age of 16. It is also presenting the plan as part of a wider online-safety agenda built around existing age-verification rules under the Online Safety Act.

The policy also fits into a wider international debate over how far governments should go in restricting children’s access to social media. Coverage has compared the approach with Australia’s, and ministers are signalling that they want stronger limits than are already in place.

Enforcement questions

The central practical question is how the age checks will work. The government has said age verification will be used, but has not yet set out the full technical details of how platforms would be expected to comply.

That leaves a major operational issue for Ofcom, which will be responsible for enforcing the new rules. How the regulator defines covered platforms, what exemptions it allows and what evidence it demands from companies will all shape whether the policy can work in practice.

The timing also matters. The latest reporting says the government is aiming for spring 2027, even though some coverage has suggested an earlier start. The spring target is the clearest confirmed timeline in the reporting so far.

Reaction and next steps

Tech companies and privacy campaigners are likely to scrutinize the plan closely once the government publishes more detail. The biggest concerns are likely to be workarounds, age-assurance accuracy and the privacy implications of the systems used to verify users.

Critics have argued that any ban could be difficult to enforce and may push teenagers toward less regulated platforms. Supporters, including child-safety groups cited in the coverage, see the move as a necessary response to the way social media affects younger users.

Further details are expected as the government finalizes the rules and Ofcom sets out how it will oversee compliance. The key unanswered questions are which legal instrument will implement the ban, what verification methods will be accepted and how exemptions will be drawn.