Spain is set to prohibit social media access for individuals under 16.
Spain will introduce legislation to make social media executives personally accountable for hate speech on their platforms, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced on Tuesday(February 3,2026).
This move aligns Spain with several other nations like Britain and France that are contemplating similar bans, following Australia’s lead in December as the first country to restrict access to these platforms for kids under 16.
Governments and regulators around the globe are also examining how children’s screen time affects their growth and mental well-being.
“Our kids are navigating a space they were never meant to handle alone… We won’t stand for that anymore”, Sanchez stated while speaking at the World Governments Summit in Dubai, urging other European nations to adopt comparable actions.
Representatives from X, Google, TikTok, Snapchat, and Meta did not respond right away to inquiries regarding Spain’s proposed actions.
Sanchez mentioned that Spain has joined five other European nations, which he referred to as the “Coalition of the Digitally Willing”,to collaborate on and enforce cross-border regulations.
He did not reveal which nations are included in this group.
Sanchez mentioned that Spain plans to introduce a bill next week aimed at holding social media executives accountable for illegal content and hate speech, as well as criminalizing algorithmic manipulation and the promotion of illegal content.
Among the proposals he put forward was a system to monitor hate speech online, and he emphasized that platforms would need to implement age verification systems that are more than just “check boxes”.
His administration is set to kick off the process of passing new laws as soon as next week, he mentioned.
Also Read | Instagram Closes Australian Teens Accounts
In Australia, social media platforms have collectively shut down nearly 5 million accounts belonging to teens shortly after the ban was implemented, as stated by the country’s internet regulator last month, indicating that this action could have a significant effect.
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