More than four in five British 16 to 24 year olds would keep their children off social media, according to a poll conducted by the New Britain Project and National Education Union. The survey of 1,675 young people found that 62% of Generation Z believe social media does more harm than good for young people.
Half of those surveyed said they spent too much time on their phone during childhood, and more than a third wished they had waited longer before using social media. Some three-quarters said stronger rules were needed to protect young people from social media harms.
The findings come as legislation aimed at tackling the addictiveness of smartphones among children has been watered down. Labour MP Josh MacAlister’s safer phones bill, due to be debated in the Commons on Friday, will no longer ban smartphones in schools or force social media firms to make content less addictive for under 16s. Instead, it will instruct the chief medical officer to review the health impact of phones.
Mr MacAlister said the bill would represent “the most serious engagement” by the Government on smartphone and social media use if supported. However, the Smartphone Free Childhood campaign said the final provisions were “nowhere near enough”, and the Liberal Democrats accused the Government of making “ponderous progress”.
A Department for Science, Innovation and Technology spokesman said the Government is committed to keeping young people safe online and that robust protections under the Online Safety Act will be in force by the summer.
