'PM doing what nobody else had courage to do – naturally, he's cocking it up'
Keir Starmer is doing what nobody else had courage to do – naturally, he's cocking it up
Where others have failed to bother, the PM is screwing up an opportunity for our young.
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Add us as preferred source Comments OPINION By Robert Fisk 16:59, Thu, Jun 18, 2026 Updated: 00:28, Fri, Jun 19, 2026 
Every time a teenager posted pictures of her self-harming online she would get messages encouraging her to cut deeper, to make it bleed more. She was told she wasn't doing it well enough and should do it better. Her social media feed was full of images of other people's self-harm injuries, with similar comments underneath those posts. And then one cold wintry day, she went on to the railway tracks at a station near her home. She died almost instantly when she was hit by a train. It was the first teenage suicide I reported on, but it certainly wasn't the last. And all of them had some kind of social media aspect as a factor.
I'll never forget the girl's face in the picture issued by her family as they paid tribute to her. And I'll also never forget how politicians did nothing to fix the issue. It wasn't until years later, with the death of 14-year-old Molly Russell in 2017, that politicians seemed to start talking about the dangers of social media. Before then, they were all too quiet, even though they must have known. The NHS knew, coroners knew, police knew, families knew, so why did politicians not do anything?
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Why did the governments led by Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, David Cameron, Theresa May, Boris Johnson, Liz Truss, and Rishi Sunak fail to take action? What were they afraid of?
But now one man has decided to step up to the plate. Seemingly wanting to be known as No Fear Keir instead of No Idea Keir, the Prime Minister has announced a ban on social media for under-16s.
It is set to become law by the end of this year, with at least 10 social media platforms, including TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram, not being accessible to youngsters.
And supposedly, I should be delighted because obviously it means that millions of children's lives will be saved and they'll be so much happier and will gambol about in the fields like lambs instead of spending all their time online, right?
Nope. Not. At. All.
What the PM and his cronies have failed to grasp is that banning 10 social media platforms won't fix the issues that exist both online and offline (especially when there are more than 100 social media networks).
The online issue concerns the algorithms that social media companies use to push content to consumers. If I spend too much time watching a video of one person opening a bag of Chinese takeaway, then the next time I open the app, I'm presented with 40 similar videos by other people. If a child sees one image of self-harm, then the next time they are on the platform, they may see hundreds.
As Molly Russell's father Ian put it this week, "sledgehammer techniques like bans" will only cause more problems. And, as he said, it does seem that the process has been rushed for political reasons.
It's not just him that has been warning successive governments about the need to force social media giants to change their algorithms so consumers aren't fed dangerous content. Charities like Barnardo's have been warning Government ministers and advisers about online harms for years. They say that online platforms need to be "safer by design", meaning that keeping people safe isn't an afterthought.
But to do this, we would need a Government that isn't afraid to tell billion-dollar tech companies that their way of prioritising profits over people's lives isn't acceptable if they want to keep doing business in our country. They need to not be scared to force social media moguls to rework their products so they are safer by design.
And, dare I say, it smacks of politicians having an eye on their time after Westminster and so not wanting to rile up anyone they may want to get a lucrative job with in the future.
Whether or not this is the case will be revealed in future years. But what is true today is that the Government is also failing to get a grip on the issues offline. And, spoiler alert, they are linked to what is going on online.
The Government will have undoubtedly seen the findings of a UK-wide study by researchers at the University of Cambridge. The investigation found that during the years 2014 to 2016, of the 544 suicide deaths in people aged between 10 and 19, 24% of them had some kind of suicide-related online experience, whether that be searching for information about methods or posting their thoughts about why they wanted to do it.
And it may even be one of the studies on the issue that prompted politicians to think they need to take action.
But what the study doesn't touch on is how many of those children tried to get help offline and were failed. How many of them were referred to mental health services by their GPs but faced a waiting list of months or years? How many of them weren't even on a waiting list because they were considered too ill for one service and not ill enough for the next one up, so they fell through the gaps?
Truly fixing the issues with social media and also improving the mental health system so children can thrive, and maybe even occasionally gambol like lambs, would be a great political legacy for the Prime Minister.
But instead, he seems content to just paper over the cracks in this country until he loses a leadership contest.
Whatever you're going through, you can call the Samaritans free at any time from any phone on 116 123. Lines are open 24 hours a day. You can also email [email protected]
Badenoch blasts 'moaning' female Labour MPs over Burnham jobs 'quota'
Kemi Badenoch has told Labour women to earn a job in Andy Burnham's Cabinet instead of demanding they are handed jobs because of their gender.
The Tory leader lashed out today amid reports that female MPs are demanding the de-facto new prime minister introduce a 50:50 gender split 'quota' in his government.
Amid reports that former foreign secretary David Miliband is being lined up to return to the role, possibly with his brother Ed as Chancellor, one female minister also complained that Burnham could not have 'more Milibands than women' in the top posts.
But in a scathing article in the Times today Mrs Badenoch told them to 'stop moaning' and get chosen on merit instead of retreating into 'more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country'.
'There are many, many reasons why you shouldn't have any Milibands in the cabinet,' she said.
'But complaining that the boys haven't given them the right jobs or that the boys are taking all the jobs, just shows that Labour's women still don't get it.'
The idea of quotas was also attacked by Baroness Jacqui Smith, Labour's Skills Minister.
Asked by Times Radio if Mr Burnham should reserve jobs for women, she said: 'No, I think what Andy Burnham should be doing is building the very best team around him to change this country.'
A letter written by the Women's Parliamentary Labour Party has called on Mr Burnham to ensure a 50:50 split between men and women in government jobs
Amid reports that former foreign secretary David Miliband (above, right, in 2010) is being lined up to return to the role, possibly with his brother Ed as Chancellor, one female minister complained that Burnham could not have 'more Milibands than women' in the top posts
But Mrs Badenoch told them to pipe down and get chosen on merit instead of retreating into 'more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country'
A letter written by the Women's Parliamentary Labour Party and seen by the BBC has called on Mr Burnham to ensure a 50:50 split between men and women in government jobs after he succeeds Sir Keir Starmer.
'We are asking you to demonstrate this change from day one and address the toxicity and misogyny within our own party and government,' it said.
Labour has never had a female leader, while the Conservatives have had three, and Mrs Badenoch urged the government to follow its meritocratic example.
'If you run a meritocracy, then you do not have to worry about jobs for the boys,' she wrote.
'Every woman who is a Conservative MP, every woman who has ever won the leadership, has had to fight to get where she is.
'By contrast, Labour women are demanding guarantees from Burnham. But the truth is he doesn't have to give any guarantees.
'If none of Labour's women are prepared to get their hands dirty and challenge him for the leadership, their demands are toothless.'
'In fact, it's quite revealing that the women's parliamentary Labour Party has written to Burnham asking him to commit himself to at least 50 per cent female ministers.
'This has nothing to do with meritocracy. It is yet more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country.'
