For several months now, I’ve been leading the case for raising the age of consent for social media to 16. On a national level, in my shadow ministerial role, I have been pushing for this to be adopted as an official Conservative Party policy, and as of this month I am delighted to say that it now has been.
I’ve heard directly from parents and schools locally who are genuinely worried about the impact social media is having on children - including online bullying, exposure to harmful content, anxiety, sleep problems, and the knock-on effects in the classroom.
Last year I took part in a “Tackling the Screendemic” event at Woodland Grange Primary School in Oadby (picture above), which was packed out. It showed just how strongly parents feel that something needs to change.
I have had hundreds of emails from parents locally asking me to back a ban for under-16s. It has been the single biggest issue people have contacted me about for months. I am planning another Screendemic event in Market Harborough in the spring, so watch this space.
Conservatives are campaigning for a ban on smartphones in schools but Starmer has been opposing it, despite clear evidence that children achieve more when we get phones out of class.
