David Vance SubstackRead More
Wonder if you caught this BBC Breakfast interview with the truly terribleTechnology Secretary Liz Kendall? She announces that next mont will deliver further details on the government’s planned ban on under-16s accessing any social media. The measures planned include aggressive restrictions on VPNs, curfews on apps for under-18s, and curbs on chatbot interactions.
Yes, they really are coming for all our VPNs and they want to impose more curfews!
What sounds like child protection is, in reality, another authoritarian power grab by a government desperate to control information flow. Kendall’s plans expose the black heart of Labour’s “progressive” agenda. Rather than trusting parents or fostering digital literacy, she and her ilk prefer blanket prohibitions enforced through technological coercion.
Restricting VPNs—tools deemed essential for anyone seeking genuine on line security sets a really dangerous precedent. It effectively hands the State a veto over how families manage their internet access. I find that infuriating! How will enforcement work? Mass surveillance of app stores, device-level monitoring, or mandatory age-verification systems that leak children’s data to private firms? The government offers no transparent answers, only vague promises of “further details.” I would put money on she was given a script to repeat and that she herself is technically ignorant!
App curfews for under-18s compound the absurdity. Teenagers prepping for exams, will face arbitrary nightly lockdowns on legitimate platforms. This infantilises older adolescents. If I was 16 again, I would do everything possible to get around their stupid restrictions.
Limits on chatbots reveal are equally harmful. By restricting AI interactions for young people, ministers risk stifling innovation in education and creativity. Chatbots really can offer tutoring, language practice, and safe exploratory dialogue—far healthier than unregulated influencer content. ChatGPT, Grok and the others can have real educational benefits ideal for young folks but Kendal thinks she can block this,
In fact her department appears much more interested in containing technology than harnessing it responsibly. This mirrors the hateful Online Safety Act’s creeping censorship, where vague “harm” definitions empower regulators to police speech.
Once infrastructure for age-gating and VPN blocking exists, you can bet that expansion to political content, “misinformation” follows. You can all see where this going and when we look around the world we can witness it,
Authoritarian regimes worldwide employ similar tactics: China’s Great Firewall, Australia’s failed attempts at encryption backdoors. The UK, once a beacon of liberty, now follows suit under the guise of protecting children. Parents, not Whitehall bureaucrats, should decide screen time and platform suitability. I know sensible parents who already use existing tools—device controls, family linking, education. The state’s intrusion undermines that authority. Perhaps that is the point?
We deserve much better than fear-driven regulation that sacrifices liberty for illusory safety. Kendall’s vision prioritises her control over our choice. I hate it.
