The British government is considering restricting children's access to social media. The approach announced by the Minister for Technology

The British minister for technology, Liz Kendall, announced on Tuesday that the government will launch a consultation on the access of minors to social media, considering measures that include raising the age threshold and restricting design features that can create addiction, according to dpa, Agerpres reports.

Kendall said the school inspectorate will review schools' cell phone policies and how effectively they are implemented.

According to the minister, “evidence-based” guidance will be developed for parents on appropriate screen time for children aged 5-16. She estimated that these guidelines would be published in April.

“We are determined to help parents, children and young people deal with these issues through a sustainable solution that gives children the childhood they deserve, improves their well-being and prepares them for the future,” the minister said in a statement to parliament.

The UK government will launch a “fast-track three-month consultation on further measures to keep children safe online”, which will include the option of banning social media for children under 16 and raising the age of “digital majority” to prevent companies from using children's data without their or their parents' consent, Liz Kendall said.

“The consultation will also include a number of other options, such as whether there should be night-time restrictions, pauses to stop overuse or doomscrolling, how we can ensure more rigorous enforcement of existing age verification laws and measures to address concerns about the use of VPNs to circumvent safeguards,” the minister said.

British ministers will visit Australia, which in December became the first country in the world to ban access to social media by under-16s.

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