Children face two-hour cap on social media in overhaul of ‘compulsive’ screen time

Children could face two-hour limits on social media like TikTok and Snapchat as part of a government plan to crack down on “compulsive” phone use, the science and technology secretary has said.

- KATE DEVLIN WHITEHALL EDITOR

Technology secretary Peter Kyle, who is due to make an announcement in the autumn, warned of the effects on young people’s sleep and their ability to focus on studying for exams, saying he was concerned about “the overall amount of time kids spend on these apps” as well as their content.

Among the ideas being seriously considered are a two-hour cap per platform, while a nighttime or school-time curfew has also been discussed, according to reports. Last year, Australia passed a law to ban all under-16s from social media, although the UK is not expected to go that far.

A new survey showed that one in five children spend at least seven hours a day using phones and tablets. Mr Kyle said he was “looking very carefully about the overall time kids spend on these apps”.