Mobile phones should be banned for under 16s- Norfolk campaigner
It's as under 16s in Australia are now banned from using social media
A local campaigner is calling on ministers here to go one further than Australia and ban mobile for under 16s.
They are the first country to introduce a minimum age requirement for social media sites. Firms could be heavily fined if they don't comply.
"Every other child was just head down and on their phone"
Thorfinn Armstrong lives in Great Moulton and is a father of two:
"I think that up until they 16 years old children should only be allowed to have a brick phone with messaging and a map app that can help them get where they need to be.
"That's all somebody of that age really needs, something that can allow them to call and text their parents and friends, and help them get around.
"My son played a tennis tournament not too long ago and in-between matches every other child was just head down and on their phone.
"That really upset him, as he's a really social-able boy and he's great at making friends. Unfortunately it just feels like so many people have lost the ability to do that.
What else is being said on this?
The former general manager of TikTok in the UK and Europe said Australia's social media ban for children is not necessarily "a win for safety".
Richard Waterworth said the enforcement of age restrictions on social media platforms in the country may lead to many "unintended consequences".
He said: "Well, I'd love to see positive effects, and you know, you've got to support the intent of this.
"But unfortunately, my professional experience tells me that this is kind of a magical thinking solution.
"Everybody who talks about it seems to acknowledge that it's not going to work as intended, that there are lots of loopholes."
Mr Waterworth said that children are going to lie about their age, meaning they will not have access to safety tools that platforms have built.
He said they will not be able to link their account to their parents' account, and won't have the right recommended feed of content.
"I think it's going to have a lot of unintended consequences, and unfortunately, I don't think that's necessarily a win for safety," he added.
Mr Waterworth discussed age verification technology, commenting that it has "improved over time".
He continued: "But you know, age verification comes with its own, again, unintended consequences.
"You have to collect data, biometric data, in order to do that and so that's a challenge, and not something that a lot of people would want, you know, companies holding their biometric data.
"Having to do that creates a lot of other issues, so...it's not a silver bullet."
Mr Waterworth was general manager for TikTok in the UK and Europe from 2019 to 2024.
What's the UK Government said on all of this?
Ministers says the Online Safety Act is helping protect young people from viewing harmful content.