Department for Science, Innovation and Technology written question – answered at on 16 June 2026.
Graham Stuart
Conservative, Beverley and Holderness
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether her Department has assessed the most popular smartphone applications used by 8 to 14-year-olds after (a) 21:00 and (b) 23:00.
Kanishka Narayan
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Protecting children online is a priority for the Secretary of State and this government. That is why we published the ‘Growing up in the Online World’ consultation, accompanied by a National Conversation on 2 March 2026.
The consultation asked for views on children’s use of social media, including questions on screen time and the impact on children’s health. The government published a progress report on the consultation on 15 June, outlining plans to restrict social media services from providing access to under 16s alongside restrictions on functionalities for wider services. Further details will be published in July.
ofcom also published research in May 2026 of children’s usage of online services after 9 PM, including apps on phones. Ofcom’s research continues to inform the government’s next steps for online safety.
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Secretary of State was originally the title given to the two officials who conducted the Royal Correspondence under Elizabeth I. Now it is the title held by some of the more important Government Ministers, for example the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.
Ofcom is the independent regulator and competition authority for the UK communications industries, with responsibilities across television, radio, telecommunications and wireless communications services.
Ofcom Web Site http://www.ofcom.org.uk
