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Mobile Phones and Social Media: Children

Asked by Gregor PoyntonLabourDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled Answered 22 May 2025UIN 52942

The question

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to publish updated advice from the UK Chief Medical Officer on the potential impact of excessive screen time and social media use on children’s (a) mental and (b) physical health.

Answered by Ashley Dalton

We are committed to raising the healthiest generation of children ever and giving mental health the same importance as physical health.

Children are being brought up in increasingly digitised environments and are facing new and complex challenges in their childhoods.

We welcome further research exploring the relationship between screentime and social media use and children’s physical and mental health. Departmental policies will remain agile in light of this emerging evidence base.

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