Ban the sale, ownership and access to smartphones for children 16 and under

692
signatures
closedDepartment for Culture, Media and SportOpened 11 March 2025Closed 11 September 2025

Background

We believe the UK is failing in its duty to safeguard its youth from the adverse effects of unmonitored smartphone use. We believe a ban for children 16 and under could help protect future generations from exploitation, radicalisation, harassment, addiction, misinformation and disinformation.

Additional details

We believe we are failing our kids. We believe due to our ignorance to the rapid development and adoption of new technologies, we have never stopped to ask if this adoption is healthy for the development of our future generations. We believe smartphone access to children who are 16 and under have led to an increase in gambling addictions, radicalisation, bullying, harassment, exposure to sexually explicit content, and exploitation.

Where it’s popular

Constituencies with the most signatures on this petition.

Source: UK Government & Parliament Petitions service. Petition ID: 714201.