Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes has urged tech giants to “take responsibility” over harmful content online after a childhood emergency was declared in Scotland.
Experts fear growing up in the country is worse now than it ever has been before. Children First announced the national emergency via the Daily Record on Wednesday following a surge in online bullying incidents and a youth violence epidemic.
The charity called for urgent action to address a mental health crisis caused by online harm.
Speaking on BBC Radio Scotland on Wednesday, Forbes said: “I don’t think we can get away from the responsibility on the tech side to reduce the harm in the first place. What we need to do is focus on the preventative action that we need to see around online content and mobile phones.
“You’ll note that the Education Secretary has been supporting head teachers in clamping down on mobile phones.”
Forbes admitted that the Scottish Government needs to do more to support child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS). Devastating figures revealed earlier this year that over 5,000 children and young people were still on waiting lists.
Of this figure, 147 were waiting over a year.
Forbes continued: “I am really taken aback – 84 per cent of people are extremely worried about the impact of social media on children and young people and the impact on their mental health. I’ve been very interested in the work of Jonathan Haidt, the American psychologist who links the rise in teen anxiety with the prevalence of social media and access to mobile phones.
“We do need to focus on supporting CAHMS and reducing the waiting times.”
The childhood emergency has been announced amid the Record’s Our Kids … Our Future campaign, which has repeatedly called on social media giants to remove violent clips of teens before they are circulated. Our Kids … Our Future was launched last February last year after a sickening series of attacks on teens across the country.
In most cases, victims were taunted with cruel comments online before being attacked, with their assaults filmed and uploaded to social media for “likes and popularity“.
Mary Glasgow, Children First chief executive, said: “The Daily Record has done some important work over the last two years highlighting some of the horrific bullying, violence and abuse that some children and young people have suffered. These heartbreaking stories highlight the serious issues with cyberbullying, smartphones and social media that are fuelling this childhood emergency.
“Content showing such extreme and disturbing acts of violence should not be on social media. The big companies must take responsibility for this and put safeguards in place to stop our children and young people from seeing this.”
She continued: “The fact that almost two-thirds of people we surveyed believe growing up in our country is worse than ever should act as a horrifying wake-up call to everyone. We must put children first. Adults across Scotland are seriously concerned about the horrendous impact that smartphones, social media and harmful online content is having on the mental health of children.
“Sadly, childhood is getting shorter in the fast-paced and dangerous world we now live in.”
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “We want to ensure that young people are safe from online abuse, including bullying and are investing in initiatives that support them to navigate online spaces and use screen time in a healthy, balanced and positive way. We also support parents and carers to ensure that they have the information to guide children and recognise when a child is at risk.
“The regulatory responsibility around online content and mobile phones lies with the UK Government. Ministers recently met with Ofcom and emphasised the need for the UK Government’s Online Safety Act to deliver effective and improved safeguards for children and young people online, including more prescriptive guidance to providers on identifying and quantifying child users of their service.”
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