Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis said on Sunday (8 February) he was in favour of banning the use of social media by children under 15 of age, as a growing number of European countries consider similar restrictions.
Countries including Spain, Greece, Britain and France are considering tougher stances on social media use over concerns about its negative effects on children. The debate intensified after Australia in December became the first country to ban access to such platforms for under-16-year-olds.
"I am in favour because the experts I know say that it is terribly harmful to children. We must protect our children," Babis said in a regular video message posted on several of his social media accounts on Sunday.
Later in the day, the government's first deputy prime minister, Karel Havlicek, told that the cabinet was seriously considering proposing a ban. If it decides to go ahead, Havlicek said legislation would be proposed this year.
Meanwhile, Spain and Greece proposed bans on social media use by teenagers last week, as attitudes hardened in Europe against technology some say is designed to be addictive.
The measures announced by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez drew fury from Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of the X platform, formerly Twitter.
Governments and regulators worldwide are looking at the impact of children's screen time on their development and mental wellbeing.
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Disruption in the Strait of Hormuz has increased the strategic importance of Bab al-Mandab, raising fears that instability in both waterways could trigger a wider global energy and trade crisis.
Flights at Catania airport in Sicily will remain suspended until early Friday as ash from Mount Etna continues to disrupt air travel, following hundreds of cancellations and diversions over the past week.
Iran says the Strait of Hormuz remains under its control, rejecting U.S. President Donald Trump’s claim of “total control” over the strategic waterway and insisting it will not reopen until Washington fulfils its commitments under an interim deal.
Iran and the United States remain at loggerheads over efforts to agree a permanent end to the war in the Gulf, according to a senior Iranian source who said there had been no progress in talks to revive the interim deal agreed in June and define a timeframe to implement it.
Russia has accused Ukraine of threatening global grain supplies after recent strikes on Black Sea agricultural infrastructure, while Moscow carried out a new overnight attack on Ukraine’s major Danube port of Izmail.
President Donald Trump has ordered the U.S. Navy to abandon its next planned electromagnetic aircraft launch system and return to steam-powered catapults on a future aircraft carrier, while also authorising limited overseas ship construction to help address naval capacity shortfalls.
A diplomatic dispute has erupted between Cuba and the Dominican Republic after Santo Domingo ordered the withdrawal of several Cuban diplomats and their family members, prompting a sharp response from Havana.
Brazil has taken the first formal step towards potential retaliatory action against the United States following the Trump administration's decision to impose new tariffs on Brazilian exports, signalling a further deterioration in relations between the two countries.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Thursday that reports about poor conditions aboard aircraft carrier the USS Abraham Lincoln in the Middle East were "completely misrepresented."
One person has been killed and six others injured after an explosion at a petroleum storage facility at the Port of Rotterdam, prompting an investigation into the cause.
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