'We have unleashed a monster': Denmark mulls plan to ban social media for under-15s

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has said that the country is exploring the possibility of banning social media for preteens, saying that smartphones and social networking apps are “stealing our children’s childhood”.

“We have unleashed a monster. Never before have so many children and young people suffered from anxiety and depression,” Frederiksen said at the opening of Folketing, the Danish parliament, as she announced the ban proposal.

She said that prolonged use of social media by children has affected their reading skills and messed up their concentration, adding that “on screens they see things no child or young person should see”.

However, Frederiksen fell short of mentioning which social media apps will be affected by the ban, but said that it would cover “several” of them. She also said that parents will have the option to restrict social media to their children from the age of 13.

It follows the example of Australia, which is implementing a ban on social media platforms such as Facebook, Snapchat, TikTok, and YouTube for users under 16, and Norway, where Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre has announced plans to raise the minimum age for social media use from 13 to 15.

In her speech, the prime minister highlighted statistics showing that 60 per cent of boys aged 11 to 19 spent their free time without seeing a single friend, and that 94 per cent of Danish seventh graders had a social media profile before the age of 13.

A growing number of countries are considering banning social media for minors. Earlier this year, French President Emmanuel Macron said that the country will ban social media for teens soon.

“I am proposing banning social media for children under 15,” Macron said on X. “Platforms have the ability to verify age. Let’s do it,” he added.

Backed by France and Spain, Greece has spearheaded a proposal for how the EU should limit children’s use of online platforms as evidence shows that social media can have negative effects on children’s mental and physical health.