Why is the UK launching an ‘Australia plus’ social media ban and how will it work?

Keir Starmer is expected to announce sweeping “Australia-plus” restrictions on under-16s accessing harmful social media apps, a move the government has framed as taking the side of parents against the big technology companies.

A consultation on online safety closed on 26 May, giving ministers just weeks to come up with policies after receiving more than 116,000 responses. Industry sources and child safety advocates have described the process as “rushed” and driven by a political timeline. It is not clear when the ban could come into force.

Key to the ban is one of the thorniest issues in technology regulation worldwide: how can tech companies verify details about their users without invasive measures – such as requiring government-issued IDs? The UK regulator Ofcom offers some flexibility in how age verification is done under the Online Safety Act. That could change under the ban.

Here is what we know so far.

What is the UK prime minister preparing to announce?

Starmer is preparing to ban access for under-16s to a number of social media apps – sources close to the process expect this to include all the major social media apps. Currently, the age restriction for major social media platforms is 13 but there is no official government-mandated age limit.

He is also expected to announce restrictions for platforms that are not banned, with certain features withheld for under-16s. Those features will include chats with adult strangers and livestreaming. It has also been reported that 16 and 17-year-olds will be set time limits for using social media.

Under-18s are also expected to be blocked from using romantic or sexual AI chatbots.

Why is the government introducing an age limit?

The prime minister has been sceptical about introducing a ban. His concerns have included whether such a move would push teenagers on to the dark web or leave them with the “cliff edge” scenario of entering the world of social media at the age of 16 with no experience of how to handle it.

However, the introduction of an under-16 ban in Australia has led to a change of heart, having prompted many Labour MPs and some cabinet ministers to push for the UK to do the same. In January, more than 60 Labour MPs wrote to the prime minister calling for a ban.

There has also been a steady drumbeat of pressure from safety campaigners for further restrictions, although views on an under-16 ban are mixed within that group. The Molly Rose Foundation, a charity established by the family of Molly Russell, a British teenager who took her own life after viewing harmful online content, said a ban would be “unenforceable” and “masks the absence of any credible plan to stop childhoods being blighted and young lives lost by out of control algorithms”.