The government plans to use the same model for the social media ban as Australia. Their model includes Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, Snapchat, Facebook, and X (formerly Twitter).
YouTube Kids and Google Classroom will not be included in the U.K. ban. Messaging services such as WhatsApp and Signal are also set to be exempt.
While a definitive list has yet to be announced, Starmer’s plans have been met with criticism from Big Tech.
“Blanket bans push kids out of such curated, supervised, beneficial experiences and towards anonymous, less safe services,” a YouTube spokesperson told TIME.
Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, argues that a ban such as this creates new risks.
“Bans risk isolating teens from online communities and information, and driving them to unregulated alternatives that lack built-in protections and parental controls,” a spokesperson told TIME.
Snapchat, meanwhile, says that the majority of activity on its app takes place in private messaging between friends and family.
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