Mother of murdered Brianna Ghey urges Starmer to ban social media for under-16s

Esther Ghey says daughter’s eating disorder and self-harm had been exacerbated by harmful online content

The mother of the murdered teenager Brianna Ghey has urged Keir Starmer to ban social media for under-16s, adding to growing pressure on the prime minister before a crunch vote on the issue on Wednesday.

Esther Ghey wrote to Starmer on Monday explaining in detail how she felt her daughter’s eating disorder and self-harm had been exacerbated by TikTok influencers with whom she had become obsessed.

And she joined eight other sets of bereaved parents in calling for the government to back a move in the House of Lords to ban younger teenagers from accessing social media platforms entirely.

Ghey wrote: “Brianna had a social media addiction and struggled with her mental health from the age of 14. She developed an eating disorder and was self-harming, and all of this was significantly exacerbated by the harmful content she was consuming online.”