Sir Keir Starmer has issued a warning to the world’s biggest technology companies that the Government will “do whatever it takes” to protect children online, escalating the battle between Westminster and Silicon Valley over internet safety.
The Prime Minister is set to confront leading tech executives at the G7 summit, with senior figures including OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman, Meta executive Alexandr Wang and Anthropic chief executive Dario Amodei expected to attend discussions.
Sir Keir warned that technology firms must act to prevent children being exposed to harmful content or face tougher government intervention.
“My message to tech bosses is clear, work with us to keep kids safe or I’ll do whatever it takes to make that happen,” he said.
The warning comes after the Government confirmed plans to ban social media access for under-16s from next spring, a major intervention aimed at tackling concerns over online harm, addictive features and the impact of platforms on children’s wellbeing.
The Prime Minister has also given companies three months to make it impossible for children to create, share or view nude images online, with legislation threatened if firms fail to act.
Sir Keir said Britain could become a global leader in technology while maintaining strict protections for children.
“I don’t just want Britain to lead the tech revolution, I want us to drive who this change is actually for,” he said.
The proposed restrictions are expected to affect major platforms including TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Snapchat and X, although messaging services such as WhatsApp and Signal are expected to be excluded.
The move has received support from campaigners including Esther Ghey, the mother of murdered teenager Brianna Ghey, who said the announcement was what she had been campaigning for.
However, questions remain over enforcement. Critics have pointed to difficulties experienced in Australia, where young people have attempted to bypass similar restrictions through tools such as virtual private networks.
The Government now faces the challenge of turning a political pledge into an enforceable system — while convincing both parents and technology companies that the new rules can genuinely make children safer online.
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