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Children: Social Media

Asked by Bell Ribeiro-AddyLabourDepartment for Digital, Culture, Media and SportTabled Answered 4 September 2026UIN 26103

The question

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has plans to give Ofcom enforcement powers against sites who fail to deliver safeguards for under 16s.

Answered by Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Protecting children online, particularly those under 16, is a top priority for this Government. Ofcom has strong enforcement powers under the Online Safety Act, including to fine companies up to 10% of their qualifying worldwide revenue. The Government has made clear that robust use of these powers to enforce the social media restrictions and the Online Safety Act more broadly is a top priority.

We have asked Ofcom to publish an enforcement strategy and report regularly to Parliament on progress.

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