Britain Plans to Bar Children Under 16 From Social Media

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said his government plans to bar children under 16 from social media, The New York Times reported. The move would follow similar policies adopted in Australia and other countries that have restricted young users' access to online platforms.

The proposal places the United Kingdom among a growing set of governments imposing age limits on social-media use, citing concerns about mental health and online safety for minors. Enforcing such a rule requires platforms to verify users' ages, a technical and privacy challenge that has complicated similar measures elsewhere.

For the technology industry, a wave of national age restrictions raises compliance costs and fragments the way platforms operate across markets. Companies must build and maintain age-verification systems that satisfy different legal regimes, and they face liability where those systems fail.

The policy also reflects a wider shift in how democratic governments approach large platforms, moving from light oversight toward direct regulation of who may use a service and how. The commercial consequences will depend on how strictly the rule is enforced and whether other large European markets follow.