EU Moves to Ban Social Media for Under-13s, and the Interior Takes Note

The European Union will ban social media for children under 13 and permit only limited, supervised access until the age of 15, under plans unveiled on Wednesday by European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, according to The Local Italy. The proposal, presented in Brussels, would set a common age threshold across the 27 member states rather than leaving the question to national law. Von der Leyen framed the measure with the phrase that Europe has the power to act.

The announcement follows a period in which several member states, Italy among them, have debated restrictions on minors' access to platforms. A bloc-wide rule would supersede that patchwork, substituting a single threshold for a set of national approaches that vary in age and in enforcement. The Local Italy reports the plan as a Commission initiative; it does not state whether the measure has been adopted or what legislative route it must still travel.