The United Kingdom is the latest country to ban social media for children under 16.
The government made this decision after "thousands" of parents told them during consultations that their children "are addicted to social media and ... trapped in a cycle of endless scrolling that displaces play, sleep and time with the family," prime minister Keir Starmer said in a video posted to social media platform X on Monday.
"We haven't rushed into it, we have looked carefully at the evidence," Starmer said.
Australia was the first country to introduce 16-and-under social media restrictions last December. The laws restrict children from creating or keeping accounts on platforms such as Facebook, X, Snapchat, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.
Just under five million accounts were deactivated in the first three months of the restrictions, yet some children are able to retain accounts or create new ones by bypassing age assurance systems, according to a March report by the country's eSafety Commissioner.
