The UK government is currently considering a ban on social media for children under 16 after conducting a detailed public consultation.

英國政府在進行詳細的公眾諮詢後，目前正考慮禁止 16 歲以下兒童使用社交媒體。

The reason for these proposed rules is based on data from the Molly Rose Foundation, which shows that 34% of teenagers saw content related to self-harm or eating disorders in one week. This issue is even more common among girls (47%) and students with special educational needs (40%). Although some safety measures were introduced last July, such as age verification, the reduction in harmful content was very small. Consequently, many people are now calling for stricter laws.

擬定這些規則的原因是基於 Molly Rose 基金會的數據，數據顯示 34% 的青少年在一個星期內看過與自殘或飲食失調相關的內容。這個問題在女孩（47%）和有特殊教育需求的學生（40%）中更為普遍。雖然去年七月推出了一些安全措施（例如年齡驗證），但減少有害內容的效果非常有限。因此，許多人現在要求制定更嚴格的法律。

Opinions on this issue are divided. Many parents and some young people support a total ban because they believe these platforms are addictive and damage mental health. On the other hand, some teenagers argue that a ban would stop them from learning, starting businesses, or participating in society. Instead of a total ban, they suggest using screen-time limits, removing addictive features like 'infinite scrolling,' and increasing parental supervision.

大眾對此問題的看法分歧。許多家長和部分年輕人支持全面禁止，因為他們認為這些平台具有成癮性且會損害心理健康。另一方面，一些青少年則認為禁止使用會阻礙他們學習、創業或參與社會活動。他們建議不要全面禁止，而應採取螢幕時間限制、移除如「無限捲動」等成癮功能，並增加家長監督。

There are also disagreements between different government bodies. Siobhian Brown, a Scottish minister, suggested using Ofcom's powers and creating a special tax on social media companies to fund mental health services. Meanwhile, critics like Ian Russell argue that a total ban might be a quick political solution but will not work if the platforms themselves remain unsafe. Therefore, the government may use a two-part strategy: a total ban for 'high-risk' platforms and specific restrictions for others.

不同政府機構之間也存在分歧。蘇格蘭部長 Siobhian Brown 建議利用 Ofcom 的權力，並對社交媒體公司徵收特別稅以資助心理健康服務。與此同時，批評者如 Ian Russell 則認為，全面禁止可能是一個快速的政治解決方案，但如果平台本身依然不安全，則無法真正奏效。因此，政府可能會採取雙管齊下的策略：對「高風險」平台全面禁止，而對其他平台則實施特定限制。

The UK government is expected to announce its final decision regarding the social media ban for under-16s next week.

預計英國政府將在下週公布關於 16 歲以下禁用社交媒體的最終決定。