The Muslim Council of Britain welcomes the Government’s intention to raise the minimum age for social media to 16. This is a change backed by more than 90% of parents in the consultation and, if implemented, will have the most profound impact on the physical and mental health of the children of this country.
We acknowledge the concerns of those who are against the age limits. A minimum age alone won’t fix everything; the harder work of holding tech companies to account and building real digital literacy still lies ahead. But it is more than just a step in the right direction. Implementing this will be the first real pushback against big tech and we call on communities to lobby their elected representatives to ensure that it is implemented as soon as possible.
Dr Wajid Akhter, Secretary General of the Muslim Council of Britain says: “We ask our communities to treat this as an invitation: reclaim the time these screens have taken, to walk in our parks and green spaces, and to sit with our children. Most importantly, let us start with ourselves – children learn their habits by watching adults. If we want them to look up from their phones, we must first look up from ours.”
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