The UK government plans to introduce a default overnight social media curfew for 16 and 17-year-olds, alongside restrictions on addictive platform features, but critics argue the measures will have little impact because teenagers can easily switch them off.
The UK government has unveiled plans to introduce a default overnight social media curfew for teenagers aged 16 and 17 as part of a broader effort to reduce excessive screen time and improve young people’s wellbeing.
Under the proposal, popular platforms including Instagram, TikTok and YouTube would automatically become unavailable to users in that age group between midnight and 6:00 a.m. Teenagers would still be able to override the restriction by changing their account settings.
Alongside the curfew, the government wants social media companies to disable features such as autoplay, infinite scrolling and other engagement tools by default for older teenagers, arguing that they contribute to unhealthy online habits.
Technology Secretary Liz Kendall said the measures are intended to help teenagers get better sleep, concentrate more effectively in school and spend more time with family and friends.
“The measures will be crucial in helping young people get the sleep they need, focus on school and college, and spend more quality time with family and friends, all of which are fundamental to building a happy, healthy and fulfilling adult life,” she said.
The proposal follows an announcement made in June that children under the age of 16 would be banned entirely from a range of social media platforms, creating a two-tier system of online protections for young users.
If approved by Parliament, the new rules would take effect alongside the under-16 ban, which is expected to begin next spring.
However, the government’s latest proposal has already drawn criticism from child safety campaigners and digital rights experts, many of whom argue that allowing teenagers to disable the curfew themselves significantly weakens the policy.
Ellen Roome, whose 14-year-old son Jools Sweeney died in 2022 after what she believes was an online challenge, said the proposal does not go far enough.
She argued that giving teenagers the option to switch the restriction off undermines its purpose.
“I just think it’s not good enough,” she said, comparing the measure to placing alcohol within easy reach of a teenager and expecting them not to take it.
The government says the package also includes plans to make artificial intelligence chatbot providers introduce mandatory screen breaks for users under the age of 18, as concerns grow over young people’s interactions with AI-powered services.
Online Safety Minister Kanishka Narayan defended the government’s approach, saying the combination of overnight restrictions and limits on addictive platform features would make Britain one of the toughest countries in the world when it comes to regulating technology companies.
SEE ALSO: Meta Expands Teen Safety Controls Across Facebook, Instagram and Messenger
But opposition politicians questioned whether the proposal would achieve its intended goals.
Conservative shadow education secretary Laura Trott dismissed the plan as inconsistent, arguing that teenagers who can simply disable the settings are unlikely to change their online habits.
Child safety organisations also expressed concern that the measures represent another piecemeal response rather than a comprehensive strategy to protect children online.
Andy Burrows, chief executive of the Molly Rose Foundation, welcomed efforts to address addictive platform design but said the government had yet to produce a complete plan for online safety.
Experts also warned that blanket overnight restrictions could unintentionally affect vulnerable teenagers.
Professor Sonia Livingstone of the London School of Economics said limiting late-night access to trusted online communities could leave some young people without support during difficult moments.
She argued there is an important distinction between stopping platforms from sending notifications overnight and preventing teenagers from accessing sources of help when they genuinely need them.
Children’s Commissioner for England Dame Rachel de Souza said young people generally do not support outright bans on social media but do want stronger protections against features designed to keep them online for extended periods.
She said the effectiveness of the proposed curfew would depend on how it is implemented and enforced.
Technology companies have also taken different approaches to age verification.
Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, has argued that age checks should primarily be handled by smartphone manufacturers rather than individual apps.
Apple recently introduced device-level age verification on iPhones and iPads, allowing users’ ages to be confirmed before accessing certain online services.
The government has also ruled out restricting virtual private networks (VPNs), despite concerns they could be used to bypass age-based restrictions.
Officials said VPNs remain important tools for privacy, security and freedom of expression, adding that current evidence suggests relatively few children use them to evade online safety measures.
Research commissioned by the government found that an overnight social media curfew produced measurable improvements in teenagers’ sleep patterns during trials involving around 300 participants.
Even so, researchers cautioned that limiting screen time alone is unlikely to solve broader concerns about young people’s relationship with technology, saying healthier online habits will require a combination of education, parental involvement and platform accountability.
