Overview
- The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges wrote to ministers after clinicians described "horrific" cases linked to online content and commissioned a three-month evidence review to guide medical practice and policy.
- Peers are expected to vote this week on a cross-party amendment to the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill proposing an Australia-style prohibition on account-based social media for under-16s.
- Political pressure is intensifying with 61 Labour backbenchers urging the Prime Minister to back a ban, as Keir Starmer says all options remain on the table and Health Secretary Wes Streeting signals support for action.
- More than 40 charities and experts, including the NSPCC and the Molly Rose Foundation, oppose a blanket ban, warning it could push teens toward less regulated spaces and remove vital peer-support communities.
- Australia’s new law requiring age verification and blocking under-16s has led platforms to flag or remove 4.7 million accounts, while experts note circumvention risks and call for careful evaluation of outcomes.